Ray Whitehouse Photography

On an unseasonably warm January night, hundreds of freshman and a few sophomores packed an auditorium in Northwestern University’s Kellogg Business School. When they walked in, each found a chair with a sealed envelope addressed to them. The envelopes contained the name of the sorority house they had been selected to join. The letters had been laid out by new member educators, members of sororities who had served as tour guides to introduce the unaffiliated women to all 12 houses in Northwestern's Pan-Hellenic Association.

The new member educators started a count down from 10. The volume rose with every number. When the countdown reached zero, the room's occupants tore open the letters. Many erupted with screams of jubilation and started embracing the women around them. Few were quiet. Clutching their envelopes, the women scurried through the side exit of the auditorium onto the lawn east of the building. Members from each sorority were there to meet their newest additions. More screams and jubilation filled the night air.

Below are pictures from that night: