Delaware Plan
 

On another thread, the "Delaware Plan" was mentioned. I hadn't heard of it so I did a Google Search and came up with this 1998 article from The Christian Science Monitor.

Fraternities Come Clean

I was curious if anyone knew anything more current about the Delaware Plan and if any other colleges have implemented this program.

Thanks.

Just did a quick search and found this at the University of Delaware site.

Five Star Chapter Evaluation Program

Still curious if other colleges have implemented this and what, if any, are y'all's reactions to the program.

Edited to add this outline from the UD site.

It doesn't seem to give chapters a way to get out of the hole. If you're not allowed to take any new members, how can you hope to improve? If you're not allowed to do anything but meetings and community service, why would you join that group over one who can do that plus have fun? :confused:

Maybe I'm missing something, but it seems nearly impossible to overcome a challenge of low membership, a bad academic semester or the like.

I can tell you that the "Delaware Plan" and its derivatives have spread to other campuses. The Plan itself was found to be legally unenforcable (this was denied on another thread, and I don't have access right now to the papers I need to prove it). Just because it's legally unenforcable doesn't mean the school doesn't use it; undergrads can be intimidated into anything.
At my campus, administrators attempted to install the thing - their document was called something else but included entire sections ver batim from the Plan. There was a quiet dinner meeting between administrators and lawyers representing several fraternities, including a local judge who said that he would consider it a civil rights case if it came into his court, and the thing was dropped immediately. Please don't take any of this as suggesting that our administrators are anti-Greek. They're not. The basics of the Delaware Plan include layers and layers of sorority-esque rules and regulations with rewards and penalties for each area based on a point system. It's the sort of thing that sororities love and fraternities hate. It was aimed at making fraternities more like sororities. The objection voiced by the attorneys included freedom of association and the fact that other campus groups were not affected. Also, there was this from one lawyer: "All these things may be noble, but each fraternity has the right to be lazy if they want to be. No one should be penalized for electing not to do community service."

My first thought as I read the list was that it seemed they would have a really hard time enforcing it. I do hope there's more to it than this because it seems to put an incident like hazing (i.e. could cause a chapter to lose recruitment privileges) on the same level as not doing enough community service.

We have a similar program for Gamma Phi, but the purpose it to recognize those chapters that excel. It's not used to punish at all.

Seems like the only value in this would be a way to get rid of a chapter that is a constant risk management problem. In a probation situation like that, members are going to leave and the leadership will either have to step up or will just crumble. And with no membership intake, it will be chapter suicide, unless by some miracle every chapter member IS in it for "the right reasons" and they don't cancel their memberships.

All they do is remove recognition? So what??

-Rudey

They're not allowed legally to remove recognition. Some nationals will not maintain an unrecognized chapter. recognition allows certain privileges on some campuses like intramurals, homecoming, sorority socials, etc.

What is so bad about it? The plan in general seems VERY hard to maintain and enforce. Is it such a bad idea to ask that chapters do good in order to continue existing on a campus? What fun would any GLO be without the ability to be active on campus? If you don't play by the rules, why be a member of a greek organization? Other organizations exist on campus. Start your own. Just hang out with friends at a house you rent off campus. Greek Organizations exist because they are seen as something better. Who hasn't heard the % of Senators/Representatives/Presidents/CEO's/Supreme Court Justices... are greek. Or how the All Greek GPA is higher than the All Undergrad GPA on campus? Or how many hours of community service are done by Greeks? Or how much money is donated to philanthropic orgs by Greeks? Why would anyone want to distance themselves from these bragging rights when they are asked to uphold their end?

Being active and being recognized are not synonymous.

There are campuses where fraternities that are unrecognized by the administration of the school are the most popular or prestigious with the students. Especially if the admin derecognizes fraternities for really small offenses. It's kinda like the Judd Nelson character in Breakfast Club being about a kajillion times cooler than Emilio Estevez, even though Emilio is the teachers' favorite.

If there are things on your campus that you have to be recognized to participate in, and not being in it and/or who wins it is a huge deal - like Homecoming for example - derecognition can be the kiss of death. But at many schools with less traditional systems, it isn't that way. If your campus in general thinks riding on a float with toilet paper (tm Boon) is kinda cheesy, they're not going to condemn you to social outcastness cause you're not allowed to do it.

Here's your answer (and by the way, your Phi Mu chapter here is magnificent). Start by asking yourself who your Phi Mu chapter belongs to. It belongs to your undergraduates, to your alumni and to your national sorority. It does not belong to the university, and yet mid-level college administrators routinely atempt to place their own stamp, their own arbitrary rules and their own "face" on your organization.
You are correct when you say that we should do good works - not because we get points or publicity, but because it's right for us to help the less fortunate. We should strive for high scholarship because it beneifts us as individuals. If achievement in those areas give us bragging rights, then they are ours to enjoy. But YOU and your sisters have made those decisions yourself. If the Phi Mus stress community service and scholarship and the Tri-Delts stress their social life - homecoming, partying with the ATOs, etc - that is the business of the Tri-delta ans the Phi Mus.
The problem with programs like The Delaware Plan is the same as the problem with hazing. Most of fraternity hazing is fun and both the brothers and pledges enjoy it...because we're guys and we're nuts. The reason we cannot haze is because there is always that 5% of the brotherhood who never get the word. They're idiots and they take things too far and someone dies and the whole organization goes down. So we cannot allow hazing.
It's the same with this Plan business. It's fine to say we should all try to achieve lofty goals. But there is always that percentage of self-impressed, mid-level administrators who carry it too far. Tey want to punish and punish and punish if the chapters don't meet their standards - not the chapters' standards but the standards the administrators impose in the name of "evaluation". It's not some greek life nimrod's business how many community service hours I do. If they want to give us a trophy of excellene, great. But you're not allowed to punish us for not participating.
If greeklife types really wanted to help chapters, they'd concentrate their efforts on helpng them apply fr their own national awards. But that doesn't feed their desire to control, to punish, and to strut about puffed up with their own self-importance. The truth is, hardly any undergrads are impressed with these Delaware Plan people, but they go along to get along.

That was well put Firehouse.

Don't you have to be on campus to exist as an organization. Without the university, there is no university organization (as a Greek Organization is). It is composed of students.
My campus has lost 5 fraternities of 12 in the last 2 years (3 hazing and 2 numbers). One fraternity president was not enrolled in school last semester.
Sororities are excellent and continue to grow and excell. They are also the only ones who carry the system-do all community service, philanthropy, make the grades, and get involved on campus.
We are considering something that would not punish so much as encourage the boys to hold their own.
Yes, sometimes it can be taken too far. I struggle trying to find the balance everyday. When the fire marshall considers condemning fraternity houses and the city is threatening to change zoning to disallow the existence of the fraternity houses, they call the university to "fix" it. Yes, if the university does not recognize fraternities they still have a brotherhood. BUT student organizations are made up of students and students need a campus. How can the 2 be separated?

Thanks for the compliment to my sorority Firehouse. I wouldn't expect any less.

They can operate underground. They just can't hold meetings in university buildings, advertise on uni property or participate in uni-sponsored events. They hold rush events through word of mouth, rather than overtly advertising them.

Like I said, it depends on how much of your fraternity life takes place on the actual campus. If no one has on-campus houses, it makes it much easier for undergrounds to exist and operate like other fraternities do. They just have a house off campus like everyone else. If the land is zoned for it, the landlords don't give a crap if the uni recognizes you or not.

Some schools have made rules that students cannot participate in non-university sponsored fraternities, but if challenged it would not hold up in court.

Do you have to be a student to join?

NIC, NPC, and NPHC organizations are defined as student organizations. If there needs no university recognition, as in underground operations/lines, what defines the pool of members. Can you just pick anyone. I know some schools have done away with recognition of GLOs, but does that mean that everyone should do it. Should universities be taken out of the picture and allow the organizations to recruit anyone?

Firehouse, I read this piece of crap Plan three times to finally get the blinding light bulb to see what the hell it means!

Basically, it is like a Product program in a retail store.
Thier last % item on the product list (Not Selling) is Expunged and is gone. That means erased and does not exist.

It is easy to say, "Oh, Go Underground". Hell, on a campus, there is no such thing. A group may not be recognized by a School, but if they screw up bad enough, you damn bet your ass, the College will do something about them. Beleive it or not, Collges are somewhat Toliterian or Dictorial.

Deleware Plan sounds good on the out set for rewarding those that do well in particpation in all functions, do not make Point Standards, are not the Most of anything but still a viable Organization, but if not, Adios, hastalabyby!

Nope in the final chapter, this sucks. :mad:

Beware of this little plan if it takes over GreekDom!:eek:

Wow, after seeing the Five Star thing I had to do a double take.

At my undergrad, prior to my graduation in May 04, the greek advisor pushed this onto the greeks, calling it the same thing.

While I haven't read the UD one, I wouldn't be surprised if the one we started with was similar.

Unfortunately for us and my school, the greek advisor is horrific and while she wanted to implement this, things keep being "probationary." I mean if she loses rosters, how is she supposed to remember all the forms the plan required for us.

I know A-Phi has a chapter at UD, if there are any of you out there, how is the plan working.

I honestly feel that some accountability btwn greeks and the greek office is positive; however, you have got to have administrative support and a good advisor. UD may have both of these, I know my undergrad did not.

Let's say a school did remove recognition. How would the school know the students that are in that fraternity?

Also, do you not think that in the future, university administrations will "own" a piece of fraternities and sororities? I base that on the way certain schools are building housing for Greeks especially and how it's in the form of communities/villages.

-Rudey

Rudey that is a very good point!

But, in some of the readings, it seems that some of the Schools do realize that "BOOK LEARNING" isnt what it is all about.

There are functions that Greeks Offer that just being a GDI dont.:cool:

Einstein was brilliant, but couldnt wash his own clothes in a washing machine. He couldnt comb his own hair either!:eek:

Why would we need universities at all. Just be a member. You don't need no university to be Greek.

Your point, if any, was lost on me.

-Rudey

You said
Let's say a school did remove recognition. How would the school know the students that are in that fraternity?

-Rudey

That means that the school would not have any part of recognizing the membership. If that were the case, what would be the function of a university to a greek organization? This would not be true. A university will always be a part of a student organization.

I completely agree with this. I have no problem with holding my chapter to a high standard. But it's going to be my national organization's standard, not my university's. My organization has a rating system implemented with specific criteria that should be met. This is what we base our programming around- accomplishing certain goals to achieve higher scores in the world of Phi Mu. I'm certain that many other sororities have these same programs, but I'm also pretty sure that the criteria differ between organizations.

Our Greek Life advisor recently tried to implement a plan similar to the Delaware Plan. However, many of the criteria on which our chapter was being graded were things that were not required or even recommended by our national organization (for example, planning one event per year with a non-Greek organization). Now, it is very fine to cooperate and work with non-Greek organizations; in fact, I think it's great. But when it becomes something that is required in order for my chapter to receive points towards being university-recognized, I take issue. A conflict then develops between what Phi Mu says is a priority and what my school says is a priority- and while it's entirely possible to do both, in this case, it would probably lead to some serious overprogramming.

You make no sense. I'm not patient today. Stop talking to me. Thanks.

-Rudey

Yes I've seen this plan almost verbatim at one school and a variation of it at another campus.

However, so far it seems for the one campus at least that we've come to an acceptable solution.

One of the big problems that I see is overprogramming and also the rather excessive types of punishment for some of the offenses. At least in the version I saw it was very "punishment" oriented and didn't really do anything to remedy the problem.

I see what they are trying to do, I just think that at least on an inter/national level we can come up with a solution that benefits both the groups involved and the university.

Also for whomever said that you belong to your international organization and alumnae...you are also GUESTS of the host institution. With that being said, it doesn't mean they get to bully you into getting whatever they want!

For those of you who get this I suggest you contact your office immediately!

That was me. I didn't say that we belong to our chapters and our nationals; I said our chapters and our nationals belong to us. Too often the institution's representatives - our "hosts" - are not hospitable. In the cases where they do not view us as guests, we are obligated to fend for ourselves and protect the rights of our organizations. There is often a fundamental difference between what the institution's reps define as our purpose vs. what we know the purpose of our Founder's was. In almost every case, the original and exclusive purpose of our organizations was the advancement and development of friendship among the members.

To paraphrase Firehouse:

The purpose of these "plans" is to "redefine" the greek system based on the pc values of the institution.

If you accept the redefintion than you compete and strive to mold your chapter to match what those administrators value.

Your concept of "worth" as a chapter and as members is then defined by how well you meet the people in the administration's expectations.

You succeed by pleasing them, you fail by displeasing them.

If all the groups accept the "plan" it becomes self-regulating, where you judge and censor each other (chapters) by how well you please college administrators.

Much like competing with siblings for the affection of unreasonable parents or players with a bad coach.

The operative question is: Why would you entrust other people to define your self-worth based on their sense of appropriate behavior, which may they may not apply to themselves, nor have any legitimate basis in objective reality?

Thats just self destructive.

I went to the University of Delaware and attending during the time of this 5-Star Plan and now it is called "CAP." I attended the school prior to the installation of the plan as well.

The Plan worked rather well from what I could see. It was not difficult to achieve points in the different categories. What is came down to was that you needed to be a Greek Chapter involved in the campus. We received points for going to football games, attending speakers, and participating in other sorority and fraternity events. For example, sororities received points for doing Sigma Chi Derby Days, Theta Chi Powderpuff, and Phi Tau's 5k For Bruce. Fraternities received points for participating in KD's Wiffleball, Alpha Phi's Volleyball, and Delta Gamma's Anchor Slam/Splash. If your sorrority or fraternity did well in terms of grades, then you succeeded in another area that you received points.

The Plan was not all about punishment. Fraternities and Sororities are placed on probation before being kicked off campus. When I was at Delaware, fraternities and sororities that were kicked off sometimes were only kicked off for a year or two. If the fraternitiy or sorority were placed on probation numerous times and were called on serious charges like hazing, then they were possibly kicked off indefinitely.

I do not know if I explained anything better or I just went on about nothing... But I have seen the plan first hand and at Delaware...

The problem is the sanctions. IF this were a voluntary program with no sanctions it would just be manipulative. But with sanctions its sinister.

Greek chapters exist to exist, and service its members. Not to have all those other goals per se.

What the administration does by creating a "plan" like that is force you to justify your existance based on their ideas of what your purpose should be.

The ultimate penalty to not conforming to their ideas is they take away your existance.

Let me give you an example:

Chapter X has existed for years blithely unconcerned with the administration. They have 60 members and have never had a risk management violation. They pay their national dues. They have lots of fun.

They don't belong to many other organizations on campus, like most students they aren't interested, unlike most students they already belong to one solid organization.

They don't do a lot of community service, and what they do accomplish they can't be bothered to report to the administration. After all, they are doing it for themselves.

Maybe their grades are even under the campus average.

So suddenly the college creates the 5-star program. And chapter X goes from being fine, viable and having lots of fun to being a One or Two star chapter.

A one star chapter would mean they can't have intake and can't socialize. A two star chapter can't socialize. A three star chapter can't socialize.

So all the fun stops for the entire group and they are threatened with death, unless they decide to do things that they had decided as individuals they didn't want to do. Do more community service, join other organizations etc etc.

There is no difference in the organization before it gets the One Star rating or right after, except that now they are somehow "bad."

See how accepting someone else's definition can hurt a chapter?

I have read what you have written, but what is the sole purpose of a sorority or fraternity? Here are just a few statements according to some fraternity and sorority national websites:

"The fundamental purpose of the X Fraternity is to cultivate an appreciation of and commitment to the ideals of friendship, justice and learning. "

"X offers to women of all ages a rich heritage based on principles of personal integrity, personal responsibility and intellectual honesty. Its primary purpose is to foster high ideals of friendship, promote educational and cultural interests, create a true sense of social responsibility, and develop the finest qualities of character."

"X seeks to create a lifetime experience which centers on reverence to God, duty, honor, character and gentlemanly conduct."

"X provides experience in group living and offers the opportunity to learn leadership and interpersonal skills that equip members to assume positions of responsibility in the world of career, community and society. X encourages academic achievement, respect for learning and development of organizational skills that prepare college women for attaining their goals in life."

I am not trying to start an argument, but you have said that chapters exist to exist and not to have goals per se. According to four chapters that are on the campus of the University of Delaware and very well-known chapters, their national mission statements state ideas and purposes similar to what the "Plan" as you have said is enforcing you to follow. Isn't your national chapter enforcing these guidelines to follow? I know for a fact while I was a member of my organization, that we had national representatives visit our chapter to ensure that we were living up to the high ideals of our organization. As a Vice President of my organization, I remember having to fill out various forms and send them to our national headquarters stating the activities we completed in the semester as well as our grade reports. Through this Delaware Plan, they are only actually helping you to fullfill your obligations as an active member of an organization on the campus and to ensure that through the various activities you are participating in, there are little to no risk factors involved.

There's a story about a rally of the old Communist Workers' Party in London. The fiery speaker ended by saying, "Come the revolution, it'll be strawberries 'n cream for all the masses!". A voice from the crowd shouted out, "But what if I don't like strawberries 'n cream?". The speaker narrowed his eyes and replied, "Come the revolution, you'll eat strawberries 'n cream whether you want it or not."
Fraternities at their founding largely grew out of a desire for independence, to build friendships away from the eyes of overbearing faculty and college rule-makers.
Of course our national organizations are founded on noble purposes, and wish to encourage those ideals among the membership of its chapters. But they are OUR purposes and OUR ideals. The first inclination of college administrators is to control. Whatever rules and standards they espouse and try to make the Greeks achieve is all focused on that mission: control.
There was an interesting exchange on my campus when this sort of nonsense was first proposed. The administrators were trying to tell fraternity presidents that all these rules would make them better, that all the grades and commuity service and diversity seminar and clean-your-lawn regulations and restrictions would create the ideal fraternity chapter.
One fraternity president stood up and said, "With respect, if you think all these burdensome regulations are going to make an ideal fraternity, then why doesn't the school create a fraternity chapter set up exactly the way you want it...and then see if any students want to join."
UDGreek, with respect, James is exactly right and has stated the case with more clarity than I could. The problem is not the noble purpose; the problem is the eagerness of the administration to punish any deviation from what they think your own fraternity should be. Come the revolution, you'll get strawberries 'n cream shoveled down your throat whether you want it or not.

YES,

Here, Here!

Sounds good on paper, "BUT", is it truely workable?

Is it the best for the Student Orgqanization?

Most if not all Greek Members will participate in many things outside of "The Chapter"!

The main thing of going to College is to Graduate, and to do that they must attain a certain GPA.

But forcing an Organization to do more than be a part of a viable Organization who do things on their own is stretching the rubber band a little to much.:(

the point is that the national HQs should be the ones enforcing the goals of their org.

Say that (example) Kappa Sig puts a very high priority on community service. They don't care if their members donate one dime to their or any philanthropy - as long as they are doing hands on community service they are fine. This is appreciated by chapters who don't have lots of members or funds.

UD puts a provision in their plan that says to get X amount of points, you must make a yearly donation of $$$ to your philanthropy. The Kappa Sig chapter there never has and their nationals are cool with it - but UD is not. They get scored low in the philanthropy area - even though they are meeting the goals of their org as their org has set them forth.

I totally agree that this should be the Inter/National org putting these things in place. AGD has had a 5 star program for it's chapters for as long as I can remember, but it's something to strive for and there are no punishments for not making all of your stars. Conversely, it's quite an honor to be a 5 star chapter. It simply sets out what goals WE see as important for our chapters.

I am very concerned overall by the increasing amount of intrusion that administrations are putting on GLOs. I don't think they micromanage all the other student organizations on campus like they are trying to do with the Greeks. Our organizations' goals should be up to us, not up to the University. They don't know what principles we were founded on. I bet they couldn't recite our Purpose or name a Founder. They do not know what our letters stand for. IF they own the housing that Greeks are using, then they are entitled to some controls there, but otherwise, it's none of their business. When events are held on campus, sure they have to follow campus policies. Outside of that, our business is our business.

Dee

The topic is similar, but I think I'll open the flood gates for more opinions. There seems to be a lot of people that disagree with UD's CAP - I've actually seen the program work for chapters that had been struggeling and provide additional guidance for a chapter to shoot for.

Now, this is slightly off topic, but if you disagree with university's programs like this, how do you feel about standards in general? Who should hold GLO's accountable? I ask this, because standards are the future in GLO's, especially NIC Fraternities with the standards initiative that is being put into place.

Again, I'm not trying to start trouble, just interested in everyone's perspective.

Those of you that have your national office determine what "star" you are, do they release that info to the public?

-Rudey

Especially for fraternities, it is up to each individual fraternity and their national officers to hold their groups accountable and determine what is important. I say "especially for fraternities" because there are SUCH huge differences throughout the IFC. Some groups want to get huge, some concsiously stay small. If you have a Greek advisor who thinks that huge chapters and huge nationals are the way to go, it's going to be hard on the smaller groups, even if they are the groups that would be best for the campus.

We give out "four star chapter" awards to chapters who excel, but we don't single out those who don't.