5 Things Every Chapter Should Be Preparing Right Now – CBFO Edition

1. Build and Finalize the Full Fall Recruitment & Intake Calendar

The most successful organizations are already mapping out August through November before summer begins.

This includes:

• Recruitment events

• Informational meetings

• Community service events

• Educational programming

• Collaboration opportunities

• Intake timelines

• University-required deadlines

• National/regional organizational deadlines

• Homecoming planning

• New member presentation timing

Why this matters – Without a structured calendar:

• Chapters compete against each other unnecessarily

• Members become overwhelmed

• Potential new members disengage

• Marketing becomes rushed

• Intake processes feel disorganized

What organizations should do NOW:

– Undergraduate Chapters

• Meet with incoming executive boards

• Review what worked and failed this year

• Build a draft Fall semester calendar

• Coordinate with campus Fraternity & Sorority Life offices

• Identify high-conflict dates early

– Graduate and Alumni Chapters

• Align mentoring/support expectations for undergraduate chapters

• Confirm advisor and support availability

• Prepare support for membership education and risk management

– Councils (CBFOs)

• Create shared calendars

• Plan council-wide involvement fairs and showcases

• Schedule collaborative programming early

• Establish intake blackout/conflict dates if needed

Best practice – By the end of June, chapters should ideally know:

• Their first 4–6 weeks of programming

• Tentative intake windows

• Marketing launch dates

• Member staffing expectations

2. Complete MIP / Risk Management / Advisor Training Before Summer

Many organizations lose momentum because officers and advisors are not trained before students leave campus.

For many culturally based organizations, this is the ideal time to:

• Complete Membership Intake Process (MIP) certifications

• Finish anti-hazing education

• Conduct advisor onboarding

• Review campus compliance requirements

• Train new officers

Critical areas to review:

• Intake eligibility requirements

• Documentation procedures

• Event management expectations

• Social media guidelines

• Risk prevention

• Crisis response procedures

• University policy updates

Why this matters – Fall recruitment problems usually come from:

• Miscommunication

• Policy confusion

• Untrained officers

• Advisor disengagement

• Last-minute preparation

Strong chapters do this now – They do not wait until:

• August retreats

• The first chapter meeting

• The week before interest meetings

Advisor preparation should include:

• Intake oversight expectations

• Communication plans

• Escalation procedures

• Event approval timelines

• Student leadership coaching

This is especially important for undergraduate transitions where institutional knowledge may be limited.

3. Audit and Clean Up Recruitment Infrastructure & Technology

Now is the perfect time to organize systems before Fall traffic begins.

This includes:

• Interest forms

• ChapterBuilder leads list

• Email lists

• Texting systems

• Social media pages

• Chapter websites

• Shared drives

• Event registration workflows

Organizations should ask:

• Where are leads currently being stored?

• Who has access to systems?

• Are there duplicate or outdated contacts?

• Is follow-up automated?

• Are officers trained on the platform?

• Are branding materials updated?

Important recruitment reality – Most chapters lose potential members because:

• Nobody follows up

• Leads are disorganized

• Contact information gets lost

• There is no communication strategy

Recommended actions NOW:

– Data cleanup

• Remove duplicate records

• Archive inactive contacts

• Verify member access permissions

– Communication preparation

• Create email templates

• Build text campaigns

• Prepare FAQ responses

• Schedule summer engagement touchpoints

– Marketing prep

• Design Fall graphics now

• Plan content calendars

• Prepare interest campaign assets

• Collect photos/videos from the year

– Pro tip
Organizations that recruit well in Fall often begin “soft recruitment” over the summer through:

• Instagram engagement

• Accepted student outreach

• Orientation participation

• Summer text/email nurturing

4. Develop a Strategic Summer Engagement Plan

Recruitment starts long before the first event. Summer engagement is one of the biggest differences between high-performing chapters and struggling chapters.

Why this matters – Potential members are making decisions during the summer about:

• Campus involvement

• Social belonging

• Organizations they want to explore

• Who feels welcoming and visible

Organizations should prepare:

– Incoming student outreach

• Welcome messages

• Orientation involvement

• Summer informational sessions

• Virtual meet-and-greets

– Relationship-building content

• Member spotlights

• Alumni features

• Community impact stories

• Educational content about organizational values

– Consistent communication – Potential members should see

• Activity

• Professionalism

• Organization

• Authentic culture

Strong organizations focus on:

• Relationship-building over hard selling

• Visibility over pressure

• Education over exclusivity messaging

CBFO organizations especially benefit from:

• Cultural storytelling

• Identity-based programming previews

• Collaboration visibility

• Cross-community partnerships

5. Prepare Leadership Transitions and Internal Chapter Readiness

Many Fall recruitment issues actually begin with weak Spring transitions.

May is often when:

• Seniors graduate

• Officers transition

• Institutional knowledge disappears

• Momentum resets

Chapters should focus on:

– Transition documentation

• Recruitment timelines

• Vendor contacts

• Event templates

• Intake procedures

• Budget information

• Campus relationships

• Marketing assets

– Membership expectations – Before Fall begins, members should understand:

• Recruitment participation requirements

• Attendance expectations

• Conduct expectations

• Social media professionalism

• Financial obligations

• Event staffing responsibilities

– Internal culture matters – Potential members can quickly identify:

• Disorganization

• Internal conflict

• Poor communication

• Burnout

• Lack of member engagement

Successful chapters use May and June to:

• Rebuild morale

• Clarify goals

• Set expectations

• Re-engage inactive members

• Recruit committee volunteers

Recommended planning conversations:

• What kind of chapter culture do we want to be visible this Fall?

• What experience do we want prospective members to have?

• What are our recruitment goals?

• What capacity do we realistically have?

• How do we sustain relationships after recruitment?

Additional Areas Organizations Often Forget

Campus Partnership Planning – Connect now with:

• Fraternity & Sorority Life staff

• Student affairs offices

• Admissions/orientation teams

• Cultural centers-[=p

• Alumni advisors

Budget Preparation – Finalize:

• Recruitment budgets

• Marketing budgets

• Apparel timelines

• Event funding

• Intake-related expenses

Marketing & Branding Consistency – Ensure:

• Correct logos

• Approved language

• Consistent messaging

• Updated chapter bios/websites

• Professional visuals

The Biggest Mistake Organizations Make

Waiting until students return to campus to start planning.

The strongest Fall recruitment seasons are usually built:

• In May and June

• Refined over the summer

• Executed confidently, starting in August

Organizations that prepare now create:

• Better member experiences

• Stronger intake processes

• Higher retention

• Better campus visibility

• Less officer burnout

• More sustainable chapter operations

Written by Ashley Swift, Customer Success Manager