Beta Theta Pi pledge dies at Penn State

[ASTalumna06]

Sigma Alpha Epsilon Alumni Board Closes Penn State Chapter House

http://onwardstate.com/2017/12/10/si...chapter-house/

Sigma Alpha Epsilon’s House Corporation Alumni Board has decided to close the Penn State chapter house property for at least the rest of the 2017-2018 academic year, according to a press release from the SAE national organization. The closure takes effect December 17.

Local alumni leaders became aware of several reported violations on December 5. They then suspended all fraternity activity and notified university officials and the SAE national organization. Neither the national organization nor the university elaborated on the nature of these reported violations.

[shadokat]

If they have fraternities in a year, they'll be lucky

Originally Posted by ASTalumna06

Sigma Alpha Epsilon Alumni Board Closes Penn State Chapter House

http://onwardstate.com/2017/12/10/si...chapter-house/

[ASTalumna06]

Grand jury slams Penn State for ignoring reports on dangerous hazing

http://www.cnn.com/2017/12/15/us/pen...ort/index.html

A scathing grand jury report released Friday described alcohol-fueled fraternity hazing at Penn State University and said the rituals were a pervasive and dangerous practice that the university has been apathetic to and failed to prevent for years.

The grand jury wrote the report following its investigation into the hazing death of a sophomore Beta Theta Pi pledge earlier this year, saying "it would be failing its duty ... if it did not report to the public both what it learned and the certain dangers it foresees if students, university administrators, and the General Assembly resist adopting profound changes on college campuses and communities in Pennsylvania."

The report also described the case of James Vivenzio, who pledged to join Kappa Delta Rho in 2012. According to the report he left the school in 2013, due to "issues stemming from his hazing." The report said he made multiple attempts to notify the university and police about the fraternity's hazing, alcohol abuse and misconduct involving the circulation of photos of unconscious, nude women from fraternity parties.

He said the three-month hazing period included mandatory drinking games until pledges threw up, and those who refused to participate were forced to leave immediately, the report said.

It said pledges were forced to drink a warm concoction that included ingredients such as cat food, urine, semen and alcohol, among others.

In a bid to put a stop to the hazing, Vivenzio met in April 2014 with the head of the Office of Fraternity and Sorority Life visited him in Virginia to see the evidence of hazing and abuse, the report said. Vivenzio testified that the official said there was not much he could do to stop it, according to the report.

Vivenzio also shared his hazing accounts with several departments at Penn State in 2014, including the board of trustees, according to the report.

The grand jury report stated that emails corroborate the fact that university administrators adopted a "policy of detachment" and chose not to involve themselves with fraternity affairs.

[Kevin]

My chapter has several veterans and active duty members. Enduring military service is no excuse to haze. I understand the historical implications, but when we are killing kids who would not otherwise be dead, our organizations shouldn't be in the position of saying they only kill x number of kids and that 99.9% are going to be fine. I don't think that's a great way to sell our product.

[Kevin]

Agreed, but NIC organizations need to take steps to ensure that when (not if) their members do the stupid things, they are not on chapter property, doing those things in furtherance of their organization's goals or doing the stupid things as members of those groups.

I agree, 18-22 year olds are going to continue to do stupid things. Let them go be stupid on their own and not be stupid as members of our organizations. Wet housing, informal parties where alcohol is served to underage members are things we can address right now.

NPC organizations have dealt with this and pushed all of the liability onto the NIC groups. They are flourishing. It's time for us to admit that these ladies have been a lot more visionary than we have and follow suit.

[shadokat]

Kevin,

PREACH MY FRIEND!!! I was having this discussion at our Greek Alumni Council meeting 2 weeks ago. The fraternities at my alma mater continue to haze and do stupid stuff and THEY are the reason that they aren't successful. It also doesn't help that my alma mater has locals. But they don't understand why the number of men going through recruitment for fraternities is 20...for like 10 fraternities!!! And the two newest groups on campus, both national fraternities have a close and watchful eye over their new chapters to ensure they are doing things right. Other fraternities on campus look at these two new fraternities as a joke...they don't earn their letters. I hate to sound callous but the only letters this kid got to earn was RIP. And Beta is the reason why.

Truly, all organizations have to up their standards, or this becomes the culture.

[Kevin]

Sadly, our NIC chapters don't have a culture problem, we have an alumni problem. Alumni are the only group of people who can ensure a continuity of culture. Alumni, through a membership review or chapter receivership (available in most groups, I'd assume) process can completely alter the course of a chapter by summarily excusing any number of brothers from membership. Most NIC national organizations invest very little in the way of alumni training and development and sadly, that's the only group which can dependably and affordably handle the heavy lifting.

Schools can also be helpful. As an organizational adviser, I have to attend a training bi-annually with the school's student life office. Schools could also conduct regular investigations into organizations where they have even a whiff of hazing activity. On my campus, at least when I was undergrad eons ago, it was pretty common knowledge who hazed because it wasn't a well-kept secret. I don't really follow other organizations now, but I doubt that's different.

Those two new organizations need to be empowered to chart their own path or else they are prone to falling into the campus culture. Every few years, something horrible happens and a national group gives a lot of lip service to change, but nothing ever really seems to change.

No one can hassle me though, we've got things buttoned up at Central Oklahoma.

[Just interested]

An anthropologist is probably, as we speak, writing a book on this behavior. Tribal groups have had "hazing" initiation ceremonies since the dawn of time for their "boys" to become "men". I would just think that after thousands of years to evolve this behavior or right of passage would have changed and have become more ceremonial than an actually harming and dangerous. My "Hazing" 50 years ago consisted of holding a match and reciting the Greek alphabet before by fingers burned, getting my pledge book filled with a signature of all the members of the chapter and their favorite things, and doing phone duty at the House. I still to this day don't believe I was "hazed" but NPC has put the hammer down and saved sorority life for generations to come. I don't know if NIC is willing or able to take the stand.

[LaneSig]

http://abc13.com/news/timeline-in-ho...death/1972965/

The timeline of the events of the evening are--I'm actually at a loss for words. Horrible? Unbelievable? Appalling? None of these feel like enough.

Every NIC chapter should be required to read this when school starts in August. The only problem is that guys (of all ages) tend to think "Nah, it wouldn't happen to us."

[ASTalumna06]

President Barron Appears On Today Show To Discuss Beta Theta Pi And Changes Going Forward

http://onwardstate.com/2017/05/10/pr...going-forward/

Friday after charges against Beta Theta Pi brothers dropped, Barron addressed the media and spoke about the level of secrecy fraternities and sororities go to in hopes of breaking regulations. He reiterated those sentiments Wednesday, saying “if behind closed doors a group of people are willing to band together, keep something secret, and not tell anyone, how is it that universities can manage to deal with a situation like that.”

“The only real tool we have in the tool box is to take away the recognition for a house,” Barron said. “It’s private property. It’s a private house. It’s privately managed. It has a national organization that is involved there. It has alumni that are there. The only tool that Penn State has to be effective is to say you’re no longer a student organization.”

[GreekOne]

I think this poses another interesting question. One would hope that women would have intervened.

http://www.philly.com/philly/columni...rat-death.html

[33girl]

First off, the flippant tone in that article is highly inappropriate.

From what I've read, the social took place before the "gauntlet" began and the women had all left. They've cooperated with the police and told them all they know. I wonder if the author would have written such an article if it were an NPC sorority chapter instead.

As for quoting Hank Nuwer, his credibility is questionable. He's called a lot of things hazing that are not.

[Kevin]

Originally Posted by 33girl

He's called a lot of things hazing that are not.

That's a big problem with the stats out there. I'd guess that most research is based upon FIPG numbers. The FIPG exists to ensure our organizations against loss. It does not exist to protect our members against liability. Anything they can call "hazing" means they can make an argument that they are not liable for the "hazing" because of all of the things they do to prevent the hazing.

For example, the study called Initial Findings from the National Study on Student Hazing in 2008 headlines with the idea that 55% of college students involved in clubs or other organizations experience hazing.

It then goes on to include "drinking games" as a form of hazing. That's a pretty broad category, right?

"I never" is a drinking game and so is the Penn State Beta Gauntlet. Only one of those is something I would ever call hazing. It's such a loaded word that it makes the discussion of hazing very difficult to give real meaning to.

[33girl]

.

Originally Posted by 33girl

I wonder if the author would have written such an article if it were an NPC sorority chapter instead.

[GreekOne]

From what I've read, the social took place before the "gauntlet" began and the women had all left.

Actually, the gauntlet took place after a short ritual. The social was to begin after that. If you read the timeline presented by the DA, the women were there when Tim fell. I have read reports that they spoke with him after his fall and they reported that he said he "was okay". So, they were definitely in a position to call 911 if they felt that his condition required medical attention.