“It was my first choice.” she says gleefully, sporting her new house shirt with pride.
Meet Anissa Wilson: a Beaverton native, dancer, student leader…and a new Alpha Phi inductee.
“It’s a way that I can get involved, continue doing community service, and meet people… It’s everything in one,” said Wilson.
Heavily involved with student government and community service in high school, Wilson wished for nothing more than to continue her benevolent ways in college. She believed life provided her with not only a way to do so, but also a means by which she was able to search for year-long sisters.
Anissa’s contentment with her house didn’t come easily, however. What ended with a celebratory opening of an envelope, began with an intensive week of formal networking events. “More formal than expected,” she said. This last week, girls who were rushing stood in alphabetically-ordered lines, Anissa being one of the hundreds.
“You do that for every open house, three or four houses a night, for three nights straight… [and] just talk,” Wilson said.
From that, comes “Philanthropy Day,” where the girls visit their top eight houses, and then, “House Tour Day,” where the girls’ rankings drop to six. During this time, the girls are also being ranked by the houses themselves. It’s what they call a “mutual process.”
A process, where, many find joy, but others find disappointment.
“It can be sad… I did get dropped by a house that I really liked,” Wilson said. “But it happens. It’s part of the process. The house wants you to be a good fit for them as well.”
Come Monday, a day in which the top three houses are chosen, things get a little easier.”It was a little more natural, less formal, and I began to feel a belonging,” Wilson said.
With Alpha Phi, Anissa noticed an ease in conversation that she didn’t elsewhere.
“It was like talking to old friends,” she noted, “There were less questions like, ‘so what’s your major?’ Every day I had really great talks with the girls.” Great talks that apparently resulted in a bid on Tuesday.
“It sounds really cheesy, but I was completely ecstatic,” Wilson said, when talking about the moment after opening her envelope.
Since that moment, Wilson has experienced an overwhelming wave of welcomes.
“It doesn’t even matter if I know them or not… When they see my shirt, they automatically come and give me a hug! So many people have already written on my Facebook wall, welcoming me.”
Over these next four years, Wilson would like to build her way up in the house and eventually hold a leadership position. She doesn’t know entirely what to expect in the experience, but she is excited for the good times to come — especially in a place where she feels like she belongs.