"I’m so lucky to be surrounded by girls who continue to make me laugh and smile, push me to be the best version of myself and amaze me with all they accomplish."
Hey PNMS!! My name is Jackie and I’m a rising 3rd year Civil & Environmental Engineering major from the California Bay Area. My first year at UCLA, even though I only spent part of it in person, produced some of the most memorable and exciting times of my life. I had made some of my best friends from living on the Hill, but I decided to rush because I knew it would be a great opportunity to meet new people and branch out during these unprecedented times. Nobody in my family was ever involved in Greek Life, so many aspects of recruitment were new to me. Yet, coming in blind with an open mind was definitely a blessing in disguise.
Even though recruitment involved a rollercoaster of emotions, the one thing that stayed constant was the effortless, enjoyable and genuine conversations I had with each and every one of the girls from ADPi. One of the most memorable was with Natalie, where we immediately bonded over our love for sports and actually watching the games on top of going to tailgates beforehand. I had the privilege of talking to her again in a later round and our conversation picked up right where we left it. We even started to make plans for after recruitment to go to football and basketball games together. This conversation, among others from ADPi, left me beaming and wishing it would never en. It was like talking to a friend I had known for years.
Since joining ADPi, our chapter has surprised me in all the best ways and I truly cannot wait for us to return in person!! Many people join Greek Life for the social aspect, but ADPi has given me that on top of many leadership, volunteer and professional development opportunities, just to name a few. Currently, I hold an officer position that has given me the privilege of interacting with many of the alumni. The fact that they are still so willing to be involved with our chapter with different events and come back to share their words of wisdom speaks volumes to the effect that ADPi has on your college experience and beyond. Our alumni are doing crazy cool things that I admire so much and so many thank ADPi for helping shape who they are today.
I’m so lucky to be surrounded by girls who continue to make me laugh and smile, push me to be the best version of myself and amaze me with all they accomplish. I love that everyone is so involved beyond Greek Life, but we still come back together at our second home at 808 Hilgard, aka the house! It’s the little moments like bonding with my Big at 3am when we were both struggling through our hardest STEM classes or waking up at 6am to go kayaking before my class with two of my sisters that make me so happy to be a part of ADPi.
So, to all of the PNMs that are going to embark on the one-week journey that is recruitment - Recruitment can be stressful at times, but know that you’ve found your home when the conversations you have make that feeling fade away. Join a sorority because you’ve connected to who you’ve spoken to. Join a sorority because you’re curious to meet and be surrounded by other amazing girls like her! So, while I hope you choose ADPi, I hope that you be yourself and go in with an open mind, so you can give yourself the best shot at finding your home away from home just like I did with this chapter.