Agree 100%.

It is difficult to know for sure since it is not something one can ever ask and get a definitive answer about, but I have a feeling this is exactly why U. Texas decided to re-involve itself in the IFC sometime in the 1990s and actually put things like formal dry rush into place (though it is just open house requirements- not an actual tour of houses in groups like we did at UGA) and take more aggressive steps to discipline chapters.

I think CU's connection with the IFC will be restored in future. I hope it is. I cannot see any benefit to the divide here- but I can see dark days ahead with more deaths and alcohol incidents.

For the sake of the CU Greek System, and us all, I hope the IFC is successful in reining things in on its own. I am just worried based on how this kind of approach (and to a lesser extent than what CU is doing) fared at Texas.

It seems that way, or at least from what little I can see, it seems there is dialogue.

I think it should remind us all (well, at least those of us at public schools) what ultimate power we have. If the University persists with imposing unfair and unreasonable restrictions on our organizations, we do have the right to go out on our own. There are positives and negatives to this, but if the University leaves us with no choice, we absolutely should exercise that power.

I agree, but in this particular case my concern is that the CU demands don't seem to have been all that unreasonable- depending on whether the final deferred rush demand was for spring or sophomore year, the former being palatable.

However, the IFC now in control had imposed a ban on alcohol at all fraternity parties for the remainder of a semester (spring I think it was- as Delt Alum said, much of this is past news.)

And that is what worries me. The core argument by the fraternities is that the University was imposing unfair and sweeping sanctions.

Yet the IFC felt compelled to do the same once they took control. So I am not so sure that CU can be the sole culprit for the split.

This, along with the record of deaths and hospitalizations, is what suggests to me the Greeks there have their work cut out for them.

The way I read the article, the university bans any organization, recognized or not, from wearing letters or other identifying logos, etc. during move-in because of the short amount of time available to get new students in and settled.

I think that there also are some misunderstandings of what really happened last year.

As a point of clarification, the deferred rush was to second semester of Freshman Year.

First, the fraternities are not "independent," at least as I understand the term. The groups are still part of their national organizations, but are not officially recognized by the University of Colorado -- which makes them ineligible to use university facilities (buildings, rooms, etc.) for rush or any other functions. It may be that the ban is on free use as oppossed to total use -- I'm a little unclear on that. This includes IFC meetings, etc., so there is some financial burden. In addition, there can be no "official" recruitment on univeristy property.

An "arms length" situation toward GLO's at Boulder if far from new and goes back several administrations. The university has long taken a "hands off" attitude toward Greeks in the hopes that, given enough rope we will hang ourselves. We've come pretty close. I've written in other forums about the demise of our chapter at CU, and won't bother to do it again, except to say that we're probably not interested in recolonizing there.

After the Gordie Bailey death at CU, hard on the heels of the Samatha Spady death at Colorado State, the CU Administration apparantely felt that, for liability as well as other reasons, it had to step back in to do something about groups that were allegedly somewhat out of control -- and did so with a number of rules. The IFC, claiming financial damage would be caused by deferred rush and loss of housing revenue during the first semester of Freshman year, refused to abide by at least that rule. CU gave a deadline for compliance which IFC refused to meet, with the result being de-recognition of IFC if the rule wasn't met. IFC declined and the administration followed through with its policy/threat.

All of that is to say that the chapters themselves aren't "independent" as in being rouge chapters. Again, they are still recognized by their national organizations, and subject to their rules and guidance. The IFC, and thus the chapters arent' recognized by the univesity, though.

I believe that these new rules don't have much effect on sororities, since they were already basically in compliance before this all began.

A simple personal read between the lines on the latest article in which the CU administration decided to allow letters to be worn during move in would be more in line with President/Senator/Brother Hank Brown's feelings. When he was President at The University of Northern Colorado (UNC to those of us here), and I was an advisor there, he was a strong supporter of Greek Life -- including actually coming to Delt Rush functions (although he was very fair in terms of talking about fraternity life -- not just Delt). He also spoke to/at Delt Alumni Chapter functions.

I know that his Delt experience was positive, and that he was a leader on the University of Colorado campus (Student Body President, I think) during his undergraduate days. Besides Brown, that chapter spawned a Mercury Astronaut a pro football player or two, and many local and nationally known alumni.

Unfortunately, given the Spady and Bailey deaths, along with a couple other alcohol related deaths on Colorado campuses shortly after, Greeks have a huge black eye with a large number of state legislators, and I doubt that big changes in the relationship between Greek Letter Organizations and this major source of university funding will come anytime soon. Following those circumstances came the incident also mentioned above of the several women suffering from alcohol poisioning on the same weekend, which really heightened the situation. As I recall, there was also concern about date rape drugs -- but I don't believe those were ever proven. Many (or all -- I don't remember for sure) had attended the same fraternity parties.

The final result, I guess, is one that is not really comfortable for the university or Greek Life. As noted above, the IFC has been forced to impose, sometimes only temporarily, many of the administrations rules that it felt were so agregious.

I don't even think it's just CU-Boulder. The entire state's greek system really needs to be revamped. There are some major problems at all schools and it really seems to be the same problems at all the schools. Although, CU seems to come to the forefront of these b/c of Bailey's death, and also with everything going on Greek wise, and sports wise there. But, I've heard through the grapevine from sisters down at UNC (Greeley) that the sorority recruitment really lacked this last spring as compared to previous years. The fraternities definately have it harder, but the sororities are getting the short end of everything at CU as well.

We weren't supposed to wear letters at move in either at UNC. We had to wear the Welcome Week shirts, but we always wore our lavaliers and some of the girls had rings. I know the men that helped always had their letters somewhere too. We could have them, as long as they weren't on the t-shirt.

As far as I last heard, the fraternities are recognized by their Inter/Nationals, but not by the University. They can't have meetings on campus property, and can't participate in University activities and wear letters. In the aftermath of Bailey and Spady's deaths, the universities across the board in Colorado have begun to really step up. I know that there are some things going on at CSU and UNC as far as recruitment, hazing, alcohol, and initiations. But, sometimes the changes are done properly and they don't work and then the university gets mad. The rules at CU do effect sororities, but they have, for the most part, complied with them. The ladies don't like them, but they understand why they are in place.