Post by tex on Jul 17, 2013 20:09:54 GMT -5
Regents express concerns on frats
by Anne Ryman on Jul. 16, 2013, under Arizona Republic News
A series of alcohol-fueled incidents that left one fraternity member dead and two underage girls severely burned has prompted the Arizona Board of Regents to send letters to the national headquarters of nearly 70 fraternities and sororities outlining safety concerns, The Arizona Republic has learned.
The letter says the regents have become increasingly concerned about dangerous and criminal activities, including reports of alcohol-related injuries, sexual assault and fatalities. The letter asks the national associations to provide information on their responsibilities in dealing with and preventing serious misconduct.
“We’re looking at the overall student experience,” Regents Chairman Rick Myers said in an interview with The Republic. “Part of that is safety.”
Myers said he doesn’t rule out policy changes, depending on what the regents find. He emphasized that Greek organizations do lots of good work and include many smart, dedicated people. At the same time, “we acknowledge there are some bad actors,” he said.
The letter comes after a string of high-profile incidents involving fraternity members at Arizona State University, the state’s largest public university.
One student died. Another nearly drank himself to death in a drinking contest. Fraternity members were involved in two brawls, and two girls were severely burned when, police say, a fraternity member threw a bottle of alcohol into a bonfire.
The incidents have drawn national attention at a time when ASU is trying to raise its academic reputation and shed its party image.
The incident receiving the most attention came last November, when ASU fraternity pledge Jack Culolias went missing after a sorority-organized mixer. A search team found him dead three weeks later in the Salt River with high levels of alcohol in his blood.
Attending a university is an honor and a privilege, Regent Mark Killian said in a recent committee meeting where regents discussed whether to send a letter. Parents sacrifice to send their children to college, he said.
And these students “don’t need to be polluted by some organization that gets them into binge- drinking,” he said. “We’ve had a kid die at ASU. We’ve had brawls and fights and people getting hurt, underage girls getting drunk. It’s a bad scene.”
Killian said the recent incidents give taxpayers the impression that university students do nothing more than drink.
The letter was sent to 40 fraternities and 29 sororities that have local chapters at the state universities.
Officials with some of the larger fraternity groups — Tau Kappa Epsilon, Kappa Sigma, Sigma Chi, and Sigma Nu — did not return calls seeking comment. Lambda Chi Alpha referred a call seeking comment to the North-American Interfraternity Conference, the trade association of 75 fraternities.
The association’s president and CEO, Pete Smithhisler, declined to comment, saying he was still reviewing the material.
Local Greek chapters are usually part of a larger national organization. The national group sets rules, including policies that address hazing, alcohol and behavior. Chapters that violate policies can face sanctions. In extreme circumstances, a national fraternity or the university will suspend or revoke recognition. Students who violate university policies can also be disciplined.
Alexander Mallison, president of ASU’s Interfraternity Council, said the extra support from the regents will be a great help to the local chapters. Some national groups are active in the actions of the local chapter, but others tend to take a backseat, he said in an e-mail. He said he is hopeful the letter will get more national chapters involved.
He described ASU Greek life as being in a “delicate state,” with the Greek community going through many hardships in the past semester. But Greeks help improve the community through philanthropic events and fundraising, he said.
“These events do help the community greatly, but some individuals have participated in actions that can also hurt it,” Mallison said.
In June, ASU revoked recognition of Sigma Alpha Epsilon after a 20-year-old member showed up to the emergency room extremely drunk. It was the same fraternity whose pledge was found dead in the river in December. The fraternity, with a more than 50-year history at ASU, isn’t eligible to reapply for recognition until September 2017.
ASU officials say most fraternities and sororities follow the rules. ASU recognizes 59 Greek organizations, involving 4,000 students, or about 7 percent of undergraduates. In the past three years, nine have violated university rules for incidents such as underage drinking, fighting and hazing.
Jim Rund, ASU’s senior vice president for educational outreach and student services, said ASU is making changes to improve safety. The biggest change is inviting fraternities to live on campus this fall at a privately operated apartment complex. A few years ago, ASU closed its “Greek Row” on Alpha Drive because of safety concerns.
Rund said that living on campus should reduce incidents because the environment is more secure. “It’s just difficult, in this day and age, for undergraduate fraternity men to live out in the community and be able to control the variables that they are confronted with, especially in social circumstances,” he said.
“(With social media), there really is no such thing as an invitation-only social event. News of those circumstances travels rapidly. Unaffiliated people ultimately are attracted to those kinds of situations, and that’s where many of our difficulties have come from.”
The University of Arizona also has had its share of fraternity problems in recent years. About 4,000 students, or 13 percent of undergraduates, belong to 49 Greek organizations. UA banned three fraternities in 2012 for various reasons. An additional eight fraternities and one sorority have sanctions or are on probation.
Northern Arizona University, where 6 percent of undergraduates belong to 23 Greek organizations, has not revoked any Greek organization in the past year. Five sororities violated alcohol policies in the 2012-13 school year, and four fraternities violated policies that included alcohol, hazing, noise violations and vandalism.
by Anne Ryman on Jul. 16, 2013, under Arizona Republic News
A series of alcohol-fueled incidents that left one fraternity member dead and two underage girls severely burned has prompted the Arizona Board of Regents to send letters to the national headquarters of nearly 70 fraternities and sororities outlining safety concerns, The Arizona Republic has learned.
The letter says the regents have become increasingly concerned about dangerous and criminal activities, including reports of alcohol-related injuries, sexual assault and fatalities. The letter asks the national associations to provide information on their responsibilities in dealing with and preventing serious misconduct.
“We’re looking at the overall student experience,” Regents Chairman Rick Myers said in an interview with The Republic. “Part of that is safety.”
Myers said he doesn’t rule out policy changes, depending on what the regents find. He emphasized that Greek organizations do lots of good work and include many smart, dedicated people. At the same time, “we acknowledge there are some bad actors,” he said.
The letter comes after a string of high-profile incidents involving fraternity members at Arizona State University, the state’s largest public university.
One student died. Another nearly drank himself to death in a drinking contest. Fraternity members were involved in two brawls, and two girls were severely burned when, police say, a fraternity member threw a bottle of alcohol into a bonfire.
The incidents have drawn national attention at a time when ASU is trying to raise its academic reputation and shed its party image.
The incident receiving the most attention came last November, when ASU fraternity pledge Jack Culolias went missing after a sorority-organized mixer. A search team found him dead three weeks later in the Salt River with high levels of alcohol in his blood.
Attending a university is an honor and a privilege, Regent Mark Killian said in a recent committee meeting where regents discussed whether to send a letter. Parents sacrifice to send their children to college, he said.
And these students “don’t need to be polluted by some organization that gets them into binge- drinking,” he said. “We’ve had a kid die at ASU. We’ve had brawls and fights and people getting hurt, underage girls getting drunk. It’s a bad scene.”
Killian said the recent incidents give taxpayers the impression that university students do nothing more than drink.
The letter was sent to 40 fraternities and 29 sororities that have local chapters at the state universities.
Officials with some of the larger fraternity groups — Tau Kappa Epsilon, Kappa Sigma, Sigma Chi, and Sigma Nu — did not return calls seeking comment. Lambda Chi Alpha referred a call seeking comment to the North-American Interfraternity Conference, the trade association of 75 fraternities.
The association’s president and CEO, Pete Smithhisler, declined to comment, saying he was still reviewing the material.
Local Greek chapters are usually part of a larger national organization. The national group sets rules, including policies that address hazing, alcohol and behavior. Chapters that violate policies can face sanctions. In extreme circumstances, a national fraternity or the university will suspend or revoke recognition. Students who violate university policies can also be disciplined.
Alexander Mallison, president of ASU’s Interfraternity Council, said the extra support from the regents will be a great help to the local chapters. Some national groups are active in the actions of the local chapter, but others tend to take a backseat, he said in an e-mail. He said he is hopeful the letter will get more national chapters involved.
He described ASU Greek life as being in a “delicate state,” with the Greek community going through many hardships in the past semester. But Greeks help improve the community through philanthropic events and fundraising, he said.
“These events do help the community greatly, but some individuals have participated in actions that can also hurt it,” Mallison said.
In June, ASU revoked recognition of Sigma Alpha Epsilon after a 20-year-old member showed up to the emergency room extremely drunk. It was the same fraternity whose pledge was found dead in the river in December. The fraternity, with a more than 50-year history at ASU, isn’t eligible to reapply for recognition until September 2017.
ASU officials say most fraternities and sororities follow the rules. ASU recognizes 59 Greek organizations, involving 4,000 students, or about 7 percent of undergraduates. In the past three years, nine have violated university rules for incidents such as underage drinking, fighting and hazing.
Jim Rund, ASU’s senior vice president for educational outreach and student services, said ASU is making changes to improve safety. The biggest change is inviting fraternities to live on campus this fall at a privately operated apartment complex. A few years ago, ASU closed its “Greek Row” on Alpha Drive because of safety concerns.
Rund said that living on campus should reduce incidents because the environment is more secure. “It’s just difficult, in this day and age, for undergraduate fraternity men to live out in the community and be able to control the variables that they are confronted with, especially in social circumstances,” he said.
“(With social media), there really is no such thing as an invitation-only social event. News of those circumstances travels rapidly. Unaffiliated people ultimately are attracted to those kinds of situations, and that’s where many of our difficulties have come from.”
The University of Arizona also has had its share of fraternity problems in recent years. About 4,000 students, or 13 percent of undergraduates, belong to 49 Greek organizations. UA banned three fraternities in 2012 for various reasons. An additional eight fraternities and one sorority have sanctions or are on probation.
Northern Arizona University, where 6 percent of undergraduates belong to 23 Greek organizations, has not revoked any Greek organization in the past year. Five sororities violated alcohol policies in the 2012-13 school year, and four fraternities violated policies that included alcohol, hazing, noise violations and vandalism.
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