Alfred University to Dissolve Greek System

[DeltAlum]

Tom -- brother and sister Greeks,

I don't have any additional information on this situation, and really don't have a way to get any more.

I feel terribly conflicted over this issue.

I don't like to take sides on anything unless I feel I really understand the facts -- and by that I mean stripping all of the emotional arguments and the public relations aspects away and really seeing the cold, hard truth.

I don't have any good way of doing that in this case. I can read the PR and newspaper reports (including those from a couple of papers I have great respect for), and I can read the pleas from Greek members who feel they have been wronged.

I don't know what is fact and what is legend.

I'm not an expert on very much, but I did spend many years around controversy. In those years, I have also learned to choose very carefully which battles are worth fighting.

Frankly, because of the above, I don't know whether this one is or not.

You surely know that I hate when any chapter is closed because it hurts the Greek System as a whole. You should also know, however, that I think some chapters deserve to be closed. In the later case, I hold the members responsible for messing up something I've worked hard to perpetuate.

I am not addressing any single chapter here, but, from the sounds of it, this is a Greek community that is/was fraught with problems. It also sounds like it was given the opportunity to clean up its act, and, for whatever reason, didn't. There are very few schools I'm aware of where the Greek GPA is lower than the all campus (male and female) GPA. Even the Alfred Greeks who have posted above don't dispute that this is the case. It appears that hazing and alcohol were a problem. The Greek participation on campus seems painfully small.

On the other hand, although much of the administrative committee from the unviersity who made this decision are Greek alumni, I question the absolute "death sentence" for the entire community. In my mind, the liability and other issues would have to be pretty damned bad to justify that. There must be some chapters on campus that deserve to survive. At least you would think so.

With the hard information available to me, I have no way of knowing if they were or not. It's two groups pointing fingers at each other. It's one groups word against the other. If I were a judge, I couldn't find in favor of either from what has been presented here.

There is no question in my mind that the university took the easy (cowards?) way out by waiting until the eleventh hour to make its announcement. I'm sure that they are counting on the controversy lessening over the summer in the minds of both the students and alumni. That's certainly not uncommon, but it doesn't sit well with me. If a hard decision needs to be made, it should be made like men and women, announced and then defended in a timely manner -- not announced quietly and then swept under the "vacation" carpet.

So, where does that leave me (notice I say "me" not "us," I never speak for anyone else unless given that responsibility)? It leaves me in a big time quandry.

I said above that I hate to see any chapter closed. However, if a chapter is damaging the system as a whole and/or not carrying its weight -- if it's not living up to the ideals of the system and its founders, then it should be closed. If a member doesn't live up to his/her fraternal oath and Ritual, then he or she doesn't deserve to remain. Sometimes it is necessary to remove a diseased part of the body in order for the rest of the body to survive. In those cases, I will personally (although sadly and reluctantly) take the charter off the wall. And you won't be missed.

So, (taking a deep breath) I simply don't know how to react to this. I don't relate to finger pointing well, and I don't have a way to find the real facts. One thing that will NEVER sway me is to hide behind "the unfair media." That's a cop out. If something is being reported that you claim is unfair -- prove it -- don't just whine about it. That is just too easy a target.

I will not go out on a limb for what may, in fact, be a Greek community that is to weak or to corrupted to survive. I also will not go out on that limb for an administration which may have an unnecessarily harsh feeling toward the Greek world, or some other agenda. That is an absolute abuse of their power.

What worries me most the the precedent. I have ranted and raged about Greeks needing to wake up to the reality of today's academic society. I have said that, as campus leaders, we are supposed to hold ourselves to a higher standard. I have argued that hazing has absolutely no part in Greek life in this day and age. I have written about understanding liability and all of the differences that are faced by today's Greek brother and sister. Some people listen, many other don't.

I simply know this: Unless we can do what is necessary to clean up our reputation, this will not be the last situation like this we will face. In the long run, I believe that the very survival of the entire Greek System as we know it is at stake here.

I hope I'm wrong and being too much of a fatalist, but I keep seeing deaths and alcohol related problems, and hazing and other things that bode badly for us. And, although age doesn't necessarily bring wisdom, experience does, and I look at this now from the standpoint of an alumni advisor and officer with nearly thirty-five years of hindsight. It's a scary thing.

Does the system deserve to die? NO!! There are good people doing good things -- important things. There are also idiots who continue to break the law (hazing and underage drinkinig being the most common) and do nothing but party -- ignoring the realities of today's world.

As I said in the first sentence, I'm terribly conflicted. I wish I had Solomon-like powers. I don't. It is agonizing to write this. My first impulse is to jump on the bandwagon on the side of the fraternities and soroities involved -- but something doesn't feel right, and, under these circumstances, they have to prove their case to me with hard facts -- not finger pointing.

So, let the flames begin -- but until someone can offer me some facts, I won't have more to say about this.

Sorry for the rambling.

[akomicron]

It's hard to dispute some of the "facts" the University has issused. However, the facts that they give are only intended to back up a decision to eliminate the Greeks therefore they say nothing of the good things we were doing and will continue to do. Even members of the Alfred community have come out and said that they don't like this decison...it will hurt the community because we do a lot for the community!

Greeks only make up 10% of the current campus however we did 80-85% of the community service-more than the service organizations.

We recently went from seperate councils (Panhelenic and IFC) to one council (IGC) and had started to make changes. We wrote a new constitution, started a judicial board, started to change standards, pursued all Greek community service events and were preparing to raise academic standards.

Yes, we had a Greek advisor-we were not the only group he advised! Several times we were told we were not his only priority he had other student groups that he needed to attend to. Furthermore, there was a period of time that there was no advisor (I believe in 98).

The 4% interested in Greek life statistic came from incoming freshman not current freshman. If you ask the majority of us in my sorority if we were thinking of going Greek when we were seniors in high school we would have said no. Incoming freshman don't even know what they are going to major-how can they know if they are going to pledge?!

As for the GPA yes SOME houses were below the University average...not all! In fact my house was far above the University GPA. We have had 4 National Merit Scholars in my house alone in the past 4 years. 4 of 7 of our graduating seniors graduated w/at least cum laude status.

Almost every Greek is involved in another organization on campus (and trust me their are plenty-if not too many-other organizations on campus). We are editors of the school paper, exec. board members of business clubs, community service orgs., members and captians of sports teams, in greek honor socities etc. So to say that we are not leaders on the campus is a joke!

To put it point blank the University report ignores all the good things that we do so that their point is proved-we needed to be eliminated. It's hard for us to get our message out...we can't conduct a survey or a report to prove the other side-we don't have the money or time. All we can do is write to the University and to papers and that's what we have been doing. We held a rally this past weekend (Alumni weekend for the University)..it went really well but basically in the end the University said that what we wanted wasn't going to happen! And all we wanted was to have our voice heard, to be involved w/the decision of where we go from here.

The University did not attempt to work w/us. No one from the task force even visited our houses. Only a few houses had representatives that spoke to the task force. The whole picture of Greek life at Alfred was not presented and when asked why, the head of the task force responded-we didn't want a snap shot in time. Well how can you look at the state of Greek life w/o looking at the present?!

So I have no concrete facts to back up our side cause they weren't studied. It's a very frustrating situation. Up until a week ago you would have read on Alfred's website about how Greek life played such a crucial part of an Alfred education and provided many benefits. I guess they either didn't believe what was on their website or didn't bother to really look.

Sorry for rambling. I wish I could play w/statistics like the University has so that we could prove our point.

L&S
AKO 731
Hold Your Candle High!

Alfred Greeks- Rochester Democrat and Chroncile

Thats the link to a article that I believe was in my towns Saturday paper. If the D and C write more about it I will post them.

[dzrose93]

Roughly 10 percent -- 200 or so Alfred students -- are in a fraternity or sorority. But about a third of the school's alumni are Greek, said Michael Hyde, vice president of university relations, as Greek life used to be more popular.

Schools that make major changes to their Greek systems usually take a hit in alumni donations, at least in the short term, he said.

"Are we concerned about giving? Yes, we are," Hyde said.

"These people are very, very deeply connected to these organizations. I hope in the long run, they'll recognize their affiliation is to their friends and the university."

Hyde says that he wants Alfred Greeks to "recognize their affiliation" to their "friends and the university." Excuse me, but what does that make our Greek brothers and sisters? Chopped liver???? Does Hyde not understand that Greeks are FRIENDS with the other Greeks in their organizations?

If I was an Alfred alumna, then I would give much more quickly to an organization that I have a close, personal relationship with than to one that just slammed the door in the faces of my collegiate DZ sisters.

[Tom Earp]

I Keep reading this and according to the School, the Greeks are lower in GRADES, have Hazing, NO People as compared to % on Campus!

I do not agree with anything they say as to a National level! That is the Rub!

Greeks usally hve a higher Grade Average as we require you as to be a member of a higher GPA or you are on Probation!

While I a cannot speak for all Greek Organizations, I know that LXA is becomeing so POL CORRECT, that they will yank a Charter if there are to many F&^% UPS! They are more Stingent than the Schools!

I look at their Charts and say Bull shit! The only thing that bothers me is the amount of Greeks compared to Campus! One can make any kind of chartds they want to!

IVY LEAGUE, Hell, they do not hold a candle to the ivy league schools!

They are a piss ant school who want to be wanna bees!

I never heard back from them on the e-m that I wrote and I was civil for once as I know how important this can and is!

Once again I suggest that all of the Greek Organizations contact the Alum who donate $$$$ to the school to inform them of what is going on!


We all need to help each other out as We Are all Greeks!!!!!

[KPU1190]

Hi All -

I would first like to say thank you for all the continued support we are recieving from you folks here on GC. Thank you very much!

I would also like to list a few links to various news organizations that have material relating to this.

http://www.wkbw.com/story.asp?x=109&id=5800

http://www.wokr13.tv/homearticle.asp...work=rochester

http://www.buffalonews.com/editorial...08/1042256.asp

[Tom Earp]

I know as a concerned member of a Chapter there, I and a few others are trying and doing a grass roots Keep the Chapter there!

Each time I talk to a Brother from LXA, I suggest to them that they need to back the Chapter there and I suggest you all do the same!

I repeat, that I sent an e-m to AU but did not hear anything back from them! GoFigure!

You as members ogf your Orgs. may be of help!

Try it!

I hear of schools that give money to Greek Orgs. Well we never did or got it is all on our own! So we do what we can!

Any Orgs out here do what you can! This could be the DOMINO of Greeks!