Clubs see smaller, choosier fall bicker

Both the number of students participating in fall Bicker and the overall numbers of students accepted to eating clubs declined significantly this year compared to last October. The decline was mostly due to the steep decrease in the number of students accepted to Cap & Gown Club, while the number of students gaining admission to Tower Club and Ivy Club increased slightly from last fall.

Last fall, Cap accepted 30 of 51 bickerees. This year, that number fell to 15 out of 40, Cap president Derek Grego ’12 said in an email. Last spring, Cap accepted 95 members out of the 204 who bickered — the largest number since the club first opened its doors to women in 1972.

Thirty-eight students bickered Tower this fall, a drop-off from the 47 who bickered last fall. Nevertheless, the club accepted 27 new members, a slight increase from last year’s 25.

“We had a lot of people come out for Bicker, so we decided, why not take as many as we can,” Tower president Joey Barnett ’12 said.

Barnett is also an associate opinion editor for The Daily Princetonian.

After accepting just six students out of 16 who bickered last fall, Ivy accepted eight students out of 19 who bickered this year, according to a source within the club. Ivy president Caroline Shifke ’12 could not be reached for comment.

Cottage Club and Tiger Inn did not hold fall bicker this year. Cottage last held fall Bicker in 2006, and TI traditionally only conducts Bicker in the spring.

Out of the 87 students who bickered, 50 were accepted to clubs. Both numbers are a dropoff from last year, when 61 out of 114 students were accepted.

Where there is still space available, sign-in clubs have been accepting new members throughout the fall, though most do not have a set date for fall sign-ins. Cloister Inn treasurer Andrea Schiller ’12 said that six new members have joined the club so far this fall, bringing the club’s total membership to 191.

Terrace Club president Ricardo Lopez ’12 said that the club has accepted at least 15 new members so far this fall — including its first graduate student member — bringing the club’s total to around 180. He added that around half of those 15 signed in during the summer and that many are former members of other eating clubs. The club still has room for interested students.

“In the spirit of the openness of Terrace, there is still space available,” Lopez said.

Colonial Club president Susan Zhang ’12 said that while she knew some students had signed in this fall, she could not provide an exact number. Quadrangle Club president Julia Blount ’12 also said that new members had joined, but cited the club’s policy of not announcing specific membership numbers.

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“We are excited to welcome our newest members into the club,” Blount said.

Charter Club filled to capacity last spring, its first year using a system that prioritizes prospective members who had shown interest in the club by attending events. President Daniel Fletcher ’12 could not be reached for comment.