Tower has record 219 bickerees

With 219 bickering, Tower Club set a new record for the largest bicker class in the University’s history. The previous record of 217 was set by Tower in spring 2008. Of those who bickered, 99 were accepted, outgoing president Steve Marcus ’10 said in an e-mail, though he declined to provide further comment.

Tower’s acceptance rate of 45 percent marks a sharp decrease from last year, when the club took 99 of 159 bickerees, yielding an acceptance rate of 62 percent.

Cap & Gown Club increased in selectivity for the third year in a row, taking 80 new members from a bicker class of 160, said a Cap member who had seen official data on bicker numbers but wished to remain anonymous. Last year, the club took roughly 90 of 130 bickerees, yielding an acceptance rate of 69 percent. In 2008, Cap accepted 76 percent of those who bickered.

Tiger Inn accepted 80 bickerees from a pool of 120, outgoing president Douglas Wigley ’10 said in an e-mail. TI’s 67 percent acceptance rate was similar to last year’s 64 percent, when it took 90 of 140 bickerees. Last year marked a sharp increase in selectivity from the two previous years, when the club accepted 85 and 84 percent of bickerees, in 2007 and 2008, respectively.

Ivy Club accepted roughly 65 of 130 bickerees this year, about 50 percent, members of the club said. Ivy president Jonathan Shifke ’10 did not respond to repeated requests for comment. The club’s acceptance rate remained relatively unchanged from last year, a member said. Ivy accepted 65 of 126 bickerees in 2009 for an acceptance rate of 52 percent.

Cottage Club accepted 83 new members of 115 who bickered, Cottage president Ben Bologna '10 said in an e-mail, yielding an acceptance rate of 72 percent.

Cap and Ivy members interviewed for this article were granted anonymity because they were not authorized to speak on behalf of their clubs.

Second-round sign-ins

Over the weekend, sign-in clubs increased their memberships by recruiting unsuccessful bickerees through a second round of sign-ins.

After recruiting only 13 members during the first round of sign-ins, Colonial Club nearly tripled its incoming membership by drawing 25 more sophomores, club president David Hou ’11 said in an e-mail.

“We’re very happy to have increased our membership count, though the total is still significantly lower than in previous years,” Hou said. “The size of our class just means that each of our sophomores will enjoy greater benefits.”

Cloister Inn nearly doubled its membership, adding 56 students through second-round sign-ins after 58 students initially joined, club president Barrett LaChance ’11 said in an e-mail.

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The number of second-round sign-ins represented a jump from last year’s number of 39. LaChance attributed Cloister’s successful second round to recruiting students “outside of the traditional groups associated with Cloister.”

Terrace Club filled to its capacity of 120 members during the second round with the addition of 34 more sophomores. The club’s 10-person waiting list was also filled during the second round of sign-ins, Terrace president Andrew Chong ’11 said in an e-mail.

“I am tickled pink that Terrace filled up in second-round sign-ins with so many most excellent sophomores,” Chong noted. “I think our baller members, our totally sweet first-round sophomores and our superstar kitchen staff made many most-excellent sophomores recognize and act right in second-round sign-ins.”

Quadrangle Club president Eric Salazar ’11 said in an e-mail that the club’s sign-in class grew to over 60 students in the second round, with more expected to join over the next week.

“I think those who chose to sign in in the second round were encouraged by how much fun our first-round sign-ins were having,” Salazar said. “We’re a small club, [though] we’re growing, and it’s hard for people to see how much fun our members have unless they are here during the week to experience the many events and services Quad offers its members.”

Roughly a dozen people joined Charter Club’s waiting list during the second round, after the club filled to capacity following first-round sign-ins, club president Justin Knutson ’11 said in an e-mail.

“We’re obviously very pleased with the second-round interest,” Knutson said. “It seems to me that a lot of students bickered this year in large social groups, much like our first-round sign-ins, and that the large second-round pool was made up of very enthusiastic and outgoing sophomores who will hopefully become valuable members of our club.”

Editor's Note: Cottage president Ben Bologna '10 responded to requests for comment after publication. The online version of this article has been updated to include his comments.