Alfred Greeks sue

[33girl]

Associated Press
August 14, 2002

Greek groups challenge school's ban

ALFRED, N.Y.-- A sorority and a fraternity at Alfred University are
suing to overturn the university's decision to ban Greek life on the
campus. The Sigma Chi Nu sorority and Klan Alpine fraternity filed a
suit Tuesday claiming the university denied the Greek organizations
due process in making its decision. They also claim school
administrators failed to follow the university's published guidelines
and procedures for dealing with hazing violations and made decisions
without substantial evidence. The university's board of trustees
decided in the spring to prohibit fraternities and sororities,
following the February death of Zeta Beta Tau member Benjamin P.
Klein, 21, of Putney, Vt. Klein was found dead 100 yards from his
fraternity house. The trustees of the university cited cumulative
troubles with the Greek houses as the reason they were shut down.
Arguments will begin in late September, though the organizations
claim they need an immediate decision since the academic year resumes
in less than a month.

[Richard(SNU)]

For those of you still in college, this is a long-brewing situation
that spans more than two decades. Klan Alpine at AU was the
organizaiton made (in)famous by the hazing death of Chuck Stenzel in
1978. His mother, Eileen Stevens, was and is a tireless anti-hazing
crusader and spoke at the SN Grand Chapter that I attended back in '82.

If you want to read more, here's a good place to start...

http://www.stophazing.org/nuwer/alfred-greek.htm

[Tom Earp]

I know at least 2 Internaionals are sueing Alfred U!

I am in hopes all do to keep the Greeks on campus! It was not due under due processes of law!

[madmax]

I am glad the greeks at Alfred are not going down without a fight but I dont think they will win a lawsuit. I dont see how Alfred has a legal responsibility to recognize greek organizations.

Does anyone know the cause of death of the ZBT brother? According to the stories I read he was beaten, but the beating didn't cause his death. I was just curious because it was his death that prompted AU to get rid of the greeks.

[OnePlus69Is70]

what i'd like to know is why greek organizations need recognition. Unless your facility is owned by the school, what power can they really have over you? If they make you live in the dorms, you get a lodge. Greeks need to take power out of the hands of school administrators.

I know in a perfect world we should be backing up our schools, and working within their mission. But in a perfect world, school administrators wouldn't be small-minded jerks from Ivy League schools who think Greek Life is a cult.

[DeltAlum]

I hope that the Alfred Greeks win their suit -- who really knows if they will. It's certainly not impossible.

If they do, however, they will need to be a model of what Greek Life is supposed to be.

When the word came out originally about the ban, I asked whether this particular system was worth saving. I asked, because I don't know. I know what I read in the articles which seem to point to a system in great distress to begin with -- hazing, alcohol violations, bad academics, etc. And the death of the ZBT brother there.

If they are to be given another chance, it is imperative that they clean up those images.

It is interesting that I can't remember ever reading what the actual cause of death for the ZBT brother was. Has it ever been released? I remember a fair amount of intrigue.

In terms of university recognition, it is not absolutely necessary, but a school has ways of working with it's host city to make things very difficult on an unrecognized organization through creative zoning and the like. In some cases, a National will side with the university and pull the chapter's charter. That has some serious consequences in terms of insurance, etc.

So, good luck to our Greek brothers and sisters at Alfred. You have a big job cut out for you. In the best of all circumstances, Greek Life will be very different assuming it survives.

[Richard(SNU)]

What i'd like to know is why greek organizations need
recognition.

- The right to hold events on campus

- The right to post banners on campus

- The right to advertise in the school newspaper

- The right to appear in campus organizational directories

- The right to live in a common dwelling (house), depending on the
land-grant status of the college and local zoning laws.

- If the school pulls recognition, the national GLO chapters will lose
recognition from their nationals (i.e. get their charters pulled).

I have no doubt that the Alfred GLO's will go Sub Rosa (look it up) if
they are banned. But this state of affars will not be fun for
anybody. What will happen is that the existing members will continue
to have ties and hang out together but with no campus or national
sponsorship there is no rush, and the organization dies as people
graduate and move on.

[FuzzieAlum]

Yes, only a few nationals will allow their chapters to continue if recognition is withdrawn by the university/college. Of course that doesn't affect locals, though. And if the university is officially anti-Greek, numbers will go down, because there are some students who won't consider Greek life under those conditions. ("The school is against it - it must be bad. It just reinforces what I've seen on TV about Greeks.")

[madmax]

Originally posted by Richard(SNU)
What i'd like to know is why greek organizations need
recognition.

- The right to hold events on campus

- The right to post banners on campus

- The right to advertise in the school newspaper

- The right to appear in campus organizational directories

- The right to live in a common dwelling (house), depending on the
land-grant status of the college and local zoning laws.

- If the school pulls recognition, the national GLO chapters will lose
recognition from their nationals (i.e. get their charters pulled).

I have no doubt that the Alfred GLO's will go Sub Rosa (look it up) if
they are banned. But this state of affars will not be fun for
anybody. What will happen is that the existing members will continue
to have ties and hang out together but with no campus or national
sponsorship there is no rush, and the organization dies as people
graduate and move on.

Your wrong on a few of your points.

Many nationals will NOT automatically pull your charter. TKE, SAE, SX, and PKA to name a few.

You can still advertise in the student newspaper.

You can still have an off campus house.

[Tom Earp]

Last I heard, from Gen Assemb., that LXA will back the local Chapter! Damn I hope so!

It is somewhat time that we as Greeks get off of the Damn Pot and Back our Chapters!

The schools are not omnipressent!

They too have rules by which they must follow the doctrun of the State Edu. Society, and the rules of FREEDOM OF SPEECH! Da!

WE are not ALL BAD! We do many things that help make That paticular Campus look Good!

[Kevin]

I thought we had that constitutional right of freedom of association?

Where do these schools get off telling us who and who we can't associate with?

[Richard(SNU)]

There's an interesting dynamic in this thread. It seems like the
people who are still undergrads are taking the "anti-authoritarian"
stance, while I'm looking more at the administration's viewpoint,
which is that they never want to have to call another parent to tell
them their son or daughter is dead. Not again.

I'm sure it's true that some nationals will stand up for their
chapters against unreasonable actions by a university. But it is also
true that the kind of people who dedicate their lives to working for a
national are basically the same type of people who dedicate their
lives to working in university administration. More often than not
they will act in cooperation with one another.

I'm not saying the opposite thing never happens, I'm just saying it's
the exception not the rule.

Also, many campuses have banned Greeks. Freedom of association is not
an absolute right. There's a lot of evidence to support the idea that
the "In Loco Parentis" doctrine is making a comeback after being
more-or-less dismantled in the 60's and 70's. For every GLO that
fights city hall and wins there are many more that just quitely fade
away.

One last thought: This thread would be a lot more interesting if
someone from AU's greek system were around to add their thoughts to
it.

PS to ktsnake: You need to go and read your back issues of the DELTA.
Mo Littlefield has written dozens of articles on this *exact* issue.

[Opie25]

"The Fraternity must always work in harmony with the college for the true ends of education."

~Arthur R. Priest, DePauw 1891
Execuitve Vice President Phi Delta Theta, 1923-1937

[lenoxxx]

I feel that the lawsuits are the best way to go here.

Holding everyone responsible for something done by a few makes no sense.

Do we punish students of Islamic heritage for terroistic events on 9/11? No that makes no sense and isnt what America is about. This whole thing is a politically motivated witch hunt, from the same vein as changing school mascots and quotas to determine the makeup of student bodies in my opinion. Both of which are concepts driven by the liberal politicos that run most colleges these days.

We'll see.

Jason Lenox

[Opie25]

Lawsuit does not challenge Alfred University's ban on Greek organizations
8/20/02

In spite of widespread news reports that a lawsuit filed in Supreme Court in Allegany County seeks to overturn the Alfred University Board of Trustees' ban of Greek organizations from campus, the actual documents do not challenge the trustees' decision.

Instead, the documents apparently seek judicial remedy to lift
disciplinary suspensions of Sigma Chi Nu, a sorority, and Klan
Alpine, a fraternity, imposed prior to the May 13 board action.

Both groups were suspended following disciplinary hearings in which they were determined to have hazed pledges earlier this year.

Suspension means that the organizations are not permitted to recruit or initiate new members or hold social events until September 2004.

Additionally, they lost voting rights in the InterGreek Council, and
the University declined to release sophomore members from their
housing contracts to live in the fraternity or sorority house.

The documents, filed Aug. 9 at the Allegany County courthouse in
Belmont, ask the court to "(direct) Alfred University to reinstate
Petitioners' (Sigma Chi Nu and Klan Alpine) University recognition to the status afforded prior to the proceedings that are the impact of the petition."

The University's Board of Trustees in May voted unanimously, 25-0, with one abstention, to eliminate the eight fraternities and four
sororities affiliated with Alfred University. It directed President
Charles M. Edmondson and Gerald Brody, dean of students and vice president for student affairs, to draft policies and procedures
determining how the process would occur.

The Board of Trustees' Executive Committee in July approved a
transition plan that allows fraternities and sororities that are in
good standing with the University to continue to function on a
limited basis for the coming academic year. They may register and
hold social events, use University facilities and services and obtain assistance from the Office of Greek Affairs. They will not, however, be permitted to recruit, pledge or accept new members. New policies adopted this summer would make individual members, as well as the houses, liable for disciplinary action if the organizations seek new members.

In order to remain in good standing, fraternities and sororities must have their houses inspected by the Village of Alfred's code
enforcement officer at the beginning of each semester to assure that the houses are in compliance with state and local codes.
Additionally, members will have to obey all federal, state and local
laws as well as applicable University policies, Brody noted.

Of the 12 Greek organizations, all but Sigma Chi Nu, Klan Alpine and Zeta Beta Tau, are in good standing.