Sigma Chi Omega Suspended
 

Hi. Regarding your previous message to the University at Buffalo, we thought
you'd like to know that UB has suspended the Sigma Chi Omega fraternity
pending a University review of reports of hazing and student conduct
violations. The student members of these groups are cooperating with the
investigation.

The group has been featured in MTV's "Fraternity Life." The television
episodes began airing their 13 scheduled episodes on Wed., Feb. 26. MTV
contracted directly with the featured students, not with UB, and most of the
filming took place in MTV-rented residences outside the UB campus.

After viewing the first episodes, UB was concerned that some of the
students' actions may constitute hazing.

Although the school has received no complaints from participating students,
UB's long-standing policy is to suspend groups suspected of hazing, pending
a complete review, to protect students from any potential danger. UB defines
hazing as any action that produces mental or physical discomfort,
embarrassment, harassment, ridicule or impairment of academic efforts.

To date, all participating students remain students in good standing at UB.
During the suspension, all Sigma Chi Omega fraternity activities will stop,
including new member education and group-sponsored activities. The groups
will not be entitled to campus support or funding pending satisfactory
completion of the review.

If deemed necessary by the review committee, disciplinary actions will be
taken by the Student-wide Judiciary and University Police as appropriate.

A reminder: MTV contracted directly with the student organizations and the
individual students and all of the show content was directly controlled by
MTV. UB did not endorse or participate in the production. The University did
permit on-campus filming in an effort to provide a more balanced look at
student life. The shows were primarily filmed off campus, in pledge houses
that were not UB residences. The houses were rented, furnished and
maintained by MTV.

We remain hopeful that the overall impact of our students' participation in
these MTV programs is positive on both the students and the Greek letter
organizations. We are reviewing the content very carefully and interviewing
the participating students. UB will deal with abuses swiftly and
aggressively.

Thanks again for your feedback and feel free to contact me if you have any
further questions. Also, you may want to continue to check the sites below
for announcements related to this issue.

And we encourage you to contact MTV to express your concerns.


Sincerely,
Tracey Eastman

Who are you and why are you posting this message, it's been discussed at least 3 times elsewhere.

Sorry, but I don't support your thumbs up message regarding this decision, it doesn't make UB look very intelligent or fair if you ask me.

Congratulations on falling for the media trap and getting your names in the paper UB. This stuff happened last semester and now you want to get involved. Obviously if a semester has gone by and yet no one has even brought charges, you'll find a way to make up a reason to kick them out.

I hope these guys end up suing the school back for slander.

Not likely.

It's pretty clear from the one show and the promos I've seen that a lot of the stuff the fraternity does would be considered hazing almost everywhere.

If what is said is the truth, there can be no slander.

i know, you can't sue a school for anything basically. But it would be an amazing thing to see one school say "We're sorry." in the local school paper.

As much as I'd love to see a university admit to being wrong on something, this isn't the situation for it.

There's nothing to apologize for.
The truth is not slander.

Regardless of anyone's personal opinion of whether or not their activities constituted hazing, those actions clearly violate the university regulations regarding hazing. Sigma Chi Omega chose to violate those regulations on national television, and thus must take the consequences that result.

Life is full of choices. If you make the wrong choice, you must be ready to deal with what results.

Sigma Chi Omega made a wrong choice. Not necessarily by appearing on MTV (that's a matter of personal opinion). But by chosing to haze, they knew the consequences that would result.

What's the saying...... you've made your bed, now you have to lie in it?

Wow, there haven't even been charges set against them and you're already finding them guilty too... What they have done on television has NOT violated any hazing laws. If they did, then the university would have said so. They are on suspension pending an investigation.

They didn't do anything wrong, regardless of what your opinion of what hazing is and what it should include. Apparently the administration isn't the only ones out there that makes poor judgments. Why don't you point out the rule that has been broken, because honestly in all fairness I have yet to witness it. But I haven't seen all the episodes, so I could be eating my words later :)


- RUgreek

They may not have violated NY State rules, but they violated the university's policies.

another thread on this subject

Both the NY State laws and the UB rules are discussed her.
For the record, the UB rule (from their greek life homepage)
Statement of Hazing
Hazing is defined as "any action taken or situation created, intentionally,whether on or off fraternity premises, to produce mental or physical discomfort, embarrassment, harassment, or ridicule. Such activities may include, but are not limited to the following: use of alcohol; paddling in any form; creation of excessive fatigue; physical and psychological shocks, quests, treasure hunts, scavenger hunts, road trips or any other activities carried on outside or inside the confines of the chapter house; wearing in public apparel which is conspicuous and not in normally good taste; engaging in public stunts and buffoonery, morally degrading or humiliating games and activities; and any other activities which are not consistent with fraternal law, ritual or policy or the laws and policies of the educational institution. "

Sig4eternity,

Are you Tracy Eastman?? If not, who is she/he? :confused:

Can this post please be deleted since other posts using full names without the person's permission have been deleted as well?

I don't know if sig4eternity is the person who's name is indicated in the original post. It looks like to me that individual is the UB Public Relations representative, or some other UB official...the letter is on their website.

Yea so? I've read that too and posted in the other thread, I still don't know what incident violates the rule.

waking them up in the middle of the night, making them clean the fraternity house, making them do pushups...take your pick

I think the fraternity should claim to be actors in a fictional TV show. I don't see how UB could prove otherwise. The house on the show was actually rented and maintained by MTV.

Considering that numerous former Real World participants have gone on record as saying scenes were set up and they were asked to repeat things they said so the sound guy could catch it all (not exactly "spontaneous"), this might actually work.

If they were asked to repeat things they said, would it really be a "set up scene" if they said those things in the first place?

Sorry, I guess that wasn't clear.

I meant that sometimes they would really say this or that and then would be stopped in the middle of the action by a sound guy saying something like "we didn't get that last part, can you scream at them again?"

In addition to being asked to repeat things they did truly say, there were other scenes completely fabricated by the directors for continiuity or "shock value."

The point is that the shows are far from "real" and SXO could easily argue that point.