CU-Bolder pres: deferred rush, no Chi Psi

[hoosier]

Byyny: Bye bye, Chi Psi
By ERIN WIGGINS Colorado Daily Staff Writer

There may be no such thing as freshman fall rush in the future at CU-Boulder - at least, that's what the CU administration is proposing.
In his annual state of the campus address Tuesday, CU-Boulder Chancellor Richard Byyny announced CU is looking into a series of new initiatives to reform alcohol abuse on campus, specifically deferring freshmen rush until at least spring semester, focusing on alcohol abuse within the Greek system and revoking the charter of CU's Chi Psi fraternity chapter.
"Today I call upon the entire campus and the Boulder community to join me in a concerted attack on the misuse and abuse of alcohol among our young people," Byyny said.
CU freshman pledge Lynn "Gordie" Bailey was found dead in the Chi Psi fraternity house on the Hill on Sept. 17 after a night of initiation that reportedly included the consumption of mass quantities of alcohol. He was the second Colorado college student found dead in a fraternity this month - CSU sophomore Samantha Spady was found dead in an alcohol-related incident in the now-defunct Sigma Pi house in Fort Collins on Labor Day weekend.
While Byyny said the measure to revoke Chi Psi's local chapter is based mostly on Bailey's death, he said the house has a history with alcohol violations and hazing. He emphasized not all houses in the CU Greek system are being viewed as violators and the problem of alcohol is much bigger than just the fraternity and sorority houses on the Hill.

"I think they're part of the solution, but some things need to change," he said following his speech.
CU Interfraternity Council President Alex Garcia said Greeks have been discussing these issues with campus administrators, but he would not comment on the proposed changes.
"We're still in discussion with the university administration and a lot of the chapter houses," he said. "There's no real consensus ... so we can't really comment further."
While fraternities and sororities are governed by their national chapters, institutions can play a deciding role in whether they are affiliated with their campus.
Samuel Bessey, executive director of the national Chi Psi fraternity, said the group is still investigating the chapter and considering its future at CU.

"We want to make an informed decision and not a hasty one. So that's where we are, and I'm hopeful that it will be in the next couple of weeks," Bessey said in a Tuesday Associated Press story.
In addition to discussing Greek reforms and alcohol, Byyny's speech included information on the progress of the Action Plan to reform athletics, the budget dilemmas CU still faces and new sexual assault and harassment protocols on campus. A task force is currently looking at more changes and he said author Jackson Katz's visit to CU last week inspired a "new dialogue on campus" about men being more involved in sexual assault prevention.
"In essence, we are poised at a crossroads," Byyny said. "We have a responsibility to preserve this great institution and its mission to educate, to discover and to serve. Simply put, that means we must do things differently in the future."