Bid Day 2023: What you need to know about University of Alabama's sorority rush

Jasmine Hollie, Tuscaloosa News
·1 min read
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Bid Day, the University of Alabama's annual sorority fall recruitment event, will be held Sunday on campus in Tuscaloosa.

That's when thousands of participating students will find out which sorority has accepted their membership bid. Thousands participated in the first round of open house events for the sorority recruitment period known as “rush week,” which began Aug. 12.

More: What the 'Bama Rush' documentary reveals about University of Alabama sororities

Rush week concludes with Bid Day, where the girls meet inside Bryant-Denny Stadium and they are handed a manila envelop which they are told to sit on. The girls open their envelopes at the same time and then "run home" to their new homes.

Bid Day used to be known as "Squeal Day," after the squeals of delight from pledges as they learned which sorority house had accepted them.

New Delta Zeta sorority members run to their house during Sorority Bid Day outside Bryant-Denny Stadium Sunday, Aug. 18, 2019. The new members gathered in the stadium where they received their bids then ran in groups to the various sorority houses where they were met and greeted by sisters of each house. [Staff Photo/Gary Cosby Jr.]
New Delta Zeta sorority members run to their house during Sorority Bid Day outside Bryant-Denny Stadium Sunday, Aug. 18, 2019. The new members gathered in the stadium where they received their bids then ran in groups to the various sorority houses where they were met and greeted by sisters of each house. [Staff Photo/Gary Cosby Jr.]

According to the Division of Student Life website, 36% of UA’s undergraduate student body belong to Greek letter fraternities and sororities. That means that 12,000 students belong to UA's 69 Greek organizations. Since  2011, UA has had the largest overall fraternity and sorority membership in the nation.

UA's soroity recruitment week went viral with videos on TikTok in 2021, followed by a documentary titled, "Bama Rush," which premiered in May on Max.

More: I went through 'Bama Rush' 24 years ago: Here's what has changed | THE MOM STOP

The documentary centers on UA students as they seek to join sororities in 2022. The film was directed by Rachel Fleit and produced by Vice Studios for HBO Max.

Classes begin on Aug. 23 at UA.

Reach Jasmine Hollie at JHollie@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: Rush Tide: Sororities to hold Bid Day at the University of Alabama