Like many of DePauw's greek traditions, spring flower-in's are highly regulated to ensure that they go smoothly and efficiently.
Flower-ins are a tradition held by many greek chapters on DePauw's campus. During the event, a female new member class is presented alongside a male new member class. One by one a male new member offers a female new member a flower. After accepting the flower, it is common for the man and woman to hug or kiss.
Current regulations for flower-ins include a "sober hour" which takes place 30 minutes before and 30 minutes after the event. Additionally, tackling, chanting, forceful behavior and peer pressure are banned. This year, a new rule was introduced that mandates the events to be supervised by a member from Panhellenic Council and Interfraternity Council.
According to Tyler Notch, IFC president, this new rule mandating increased supervision by authority figures was created in an attempt to address a "past problem across the board with chanting."
"Chanting makes new members feel pressured, which is not what flower-ins are about," Notch said. "They're about meeting people."
Sophomore Libby Warren, a Panhellenic Council member that is involved in flower-ins, agrees.
"The problem lies in when a girl is anxious or afraid to get flowered-in. There would be controversy if we stopped flower-ins altogether, but risk-management and chapter presidents understand that some regulations are needed," Warren said.
Senior Kunhee Lee, member of Alpha Chi Omega sorority, said she noticed an improvement in the way flower-ins are conducted.
"My freshman year, when I was being flowered-in, there was a lot of chanting of things like 'make out,'" Lee said. "But I noticed that by last year, although there was chanting, it was more positive-chants like 'Meet her dad!' or, 'Take her out!'"
However, even with this improvement, some have noticed that some freshman may still feel pressured or uncomfortable at flower-ins.
"Even though flower-ins are entertaining for the people watching, I think that the way members of a pledge class act can still make the other members feel pressured, even if not intentionally," freshman Emily Behrens, member of Alpha Chi Omega sorority said. "Upperclassmen explicitly tell freshmen not to feel pressured to make out with the guys they are paired with. But I don't think that any new pledge members would even think of doing that in the first place if it hadn't been mentioned to them."
Freshman Michael Tobin, member of Sigma Chi fraternity, agrees that there is an underlying pressure associated with flower-ins, but doesn't think that it's a serious problem.
"There's some pressure," Tobin said, "but when you decide to not do anything, everyone is okay with it."