TERMINOLOGY

Affiliated Member	An initiated member who transfers to a college or university where there is a chapter of Delta Zeta may become an affiliated member upon invitation of the chapter.
Alumna Member	A member who has lifelong membership benefits. She may choose to participate in an alumnae chapter. She is usually a graduated member or one who has left school and who no longer has active collegiate chapter privileges. (Plural: Alumnae) Alumnae members involved with a chapter are involved only as advisors, not active members of a chapter. As such, alumnae members do not live in the chapter house or participate in most chapter activities.
Alumna Initiate	A woman, not enrolled in college, who is invited to become an initiated member because of her connection with, and interest in, Delta Zeta. Alumnae initiates then have all rights of privileges of other alumna members of the organization.
Area Alumnae Director (AAD)	Appointed by National Council to supervise alumnae activities in an area.
Badge	A gold lamp with four pearls and a diamond in the flame. It is worn only by initiated members and placed over the heart above all other pins.
Bid	A formal invitation to join a sorority or fraternity, usually given to prospective members at the conclusion of a campus’ recruitment period.
Big Sister	An initiated member who sponsors, advises and guides a New Member through her pledgeship and initiation.
Educational Leadership Consultant (ELC)	A newly graduated Delta Zeta who is hired by the National Council to visit college chapters to assist them with leadership training, collegiate programming and recruitment activities.
Chapter	A membership unit of a national or international sorority or fraternity that is located on a single college/university campus and whose membership is limited to students and alumnae of that host institution.
College Chapter Director (CCD)	A local Delta Zeta alumna who volunteers her time to act as an advisor for the chapter.
College Panhellenic Association	The cooperative campus organization of collegiate members of NPC sororities that generally sets and enforces common standards for a variety of activities, including the recruitment process on campus.
Collegiate/Active Member	An initiated member who pays dues and participates fully in the activities of a collegiate chapter on a college/university campus.
Colony	The organization of a group before they become installed as a full fledged chapter.
Deactivation	To voluntarily sever one's membership in the organization. Deactivated members have resigned and no longer enjoy the rights and privileges that are offered to collegiate or alumnae members.
DZ DeZigns	The Sorority’s boutique of Delta Zeta clothing and accessories, housed at National Headquarters.
Delta Zeta Foundation	A separate corporate entity that assists the Sorority by providing scholarship and funding other educational/philanthropic programs.
Extension	The process of establishing new chapters of Delta Zeta.
Formal Recruitment	A series of parties or events given by each Sorority during a period which is scheduled and governed by Panhellenic Council.
Founders Day	National celebration of Delta Zeta chapters to commemorate the founding of the Sorority on October 24, 1902.
Fraternity	A Greek letter sisterhood or brotherhood.
Greeks	Sorority and fraternity members.
Hazing	Persecuting or harassing with humiliating tasks, words or actions. Forbidden by Delta Zeta Sorority.
House	A chapter’s living or meeting facility.
Initiate	All women, collegiate or alumnae, who have taken part in the initiation ceremony and are therefore considered full members of Delta Zeta.
Initiation	Ritualistic ceremony which serves as the final educational component whereby new members learn mottos, ideals, and creeds. Members who have completed initiation receive lifelong privileges in the organization.
Installation	The establishment and chartering of a new Delta Zeta chapter.
*The LAMP*	The official publication of Delta Zeta Sorority. All initiated members receive a lifetime subscription.
Legacy	A potential member who is a biological or adopted relative (daughter, granddaughter, great-granddaughter or sister) of an initiated member (alive or deceased) of any Delta Zeta chapter. This may include half-sisters or step relations if the relationship to the Delta Zeta member has been a close one. As a general rule, Delta Zeta and other Greek organizations provide a slight recruitment preference to prospective legacy members.
National Council	The governing leadership of Delta Zeta. These volunteer women are elected at the National Convention and serve for a two-year term. Elected officers serve no more than two terms consecutively in the same position. There are seven positions as specified in the Code of Regulations, Reg. VII, in addition to National Directors elected at National Convention whose duties are determined by the National Council.
National Convention	The biennial meeting of the Sorority. Delegates from chapters and alumnae groups form the Convention body, charged with conducting the Sorority’s business, including: (1) election of national officers and (2) approval of new standards and policies for the organization.
National Headquarters	The building that houses the Delta Zeta Sorority and Foundation offices and the Historical Museum, located in Oxford, Ohio.
National Panhellenic Conference (NPC)	An organization of 26 national sororities which meets regularly to share concerns and provide mutual solutions and support. The NPC uses a consensus-based approach – called Unanimous Agreements - for developing policies and programs to serve college members nationwide. The NPC governs the Collegiate Panhellenic groups to ensure that industry-wide standards are enforced on each campus, especially in regards to recruitment, education and retention of members.
New Member	A woman or man who has accepted a sorority or fraternity bid but is not yet an initiated member. Delta Zeta members spend no more than eight weeks as a New Member before they are initiated.
Pledge	Promise made by a new member.
Potential New Member	Any woman interested in becoming a sorority member who is matriculated and eligible according to College Panhellenic Association requirements.
Recruitment	A period of time during the school year in which events are held by each sorority for the purpose of selecting new members.
Recruitment Period	The specified time reserved on campus for structured recruitment.
Reference	A letter of support for a potential new member of Delta Zeta. References most commonly come from alumnae members of Delta Zeta who knew the potential new member before she came to campus.
Regional Collegiate Coordinator (RCC)	A Delta Zeta alumna appointed by National Council to supervise the CCDs and collegiate chapters within an assigned region.
Relationship Statement	An agreement established between the host institution and the fraternal organizations on a campus which defines the reciprocal responsibilities each has to the other.
Reorganization	When fraternal organizations deal with a struggling chapter, they often choose to reorganize the chapter instead of closing the chapter and returning in a few years (recolonization). When a chapter is reorganized, national leadership of the organization will work with the local alumnae and the student members to develop a plan for increasing the membership and seeing that the membership’s daily actions were congruent with the organization’s values.
Sorority	A Greek-letter sisterhood.
Total	Sororities use a special process for recruitment that is designed to ensure that most, if not all, sororities on campus have roughly the same number of members and have the population to be successful student groups. The “total” on campus is a definition of what the College Panhellenic defines as the most desirable chapter size for its campus. Total changes every year on every campus and is dependent on two key factors: (1) how many women are participating in the recruitment process that year and (2) how many sorority chapters there are on campus.
Unanimous Agreements	Specific procedures and ethics that are unanimously agreed upon by all 26 NPC groups.