Do you think your organization's risk management policies go overboard?

[LexiKD]

Overboard no. Cautious yes.
As a business owner in today’s society I promise the safer the better. It really isn’t that organizations don't trust our own members but more that we cannot afford to pretend that lawsuits over ridiculous events do not happen. When you insure a large group like a GLO liability really has to become your first concern.
Although I sound like an old lady I promise it’s better for our members to learn this lesson now rather than later.
I think it just gives us another reason to become more creative!

[Senusret I]

Originally Posted by Drolefille

Our chapter was very sensible about it.. we've done unwinding yarn and such. The only real annoyance was the fun scavenger hunts we did (where everyone participated) they became "everyone goes and takes pictures of different things and we all meet at Ted Drewes" events instead.

My APO chapter changed our "scavenger hunts" to something similar....and even now, I believe they are on the road to evolving further. Instead of giving pledges clues and saying go find.....(random object) I think we will just make it a self guided tour of the things we'd like for them to see.

Originally Posted by DSTCHAOS

No.

It is my organization's responsibility to keep over 900 chapters and over 200K members in check. They are doing what they need to do to account for every contingency that they can account for beforehand.

Ditto with APhiA. I am not one of those MIP-haters. (Membership Intake Process, as opposed to pledging) If a chapter is SERIOUS about both member selection and MIP, it can be a very, VERY beautiful and moving experience.

Also, Alpha has not done away with a lot of the things that make BGLOs unique that some see as a risk management issue. We still allow neophyte shows, line names, and other accoutrements of the "old" process. We gave them new meanings, though. Obviously they aren't "pledge" names but they are still names we give out based on personality and other experiences.

I just hate that some BGLOs are legislating and abolishing ALL aspects of "the old way." Some things aren't a risk issue if you change the meaning.

Like my APO chapter.....about 15 years ago, we got in trouble for lewd nicknames. They didn't make us stop nicknaming all together, they just told us to clean it up. And we did.....

[skylark]

Originally Posted by Sailboat Sis

How about no pictures that even insinuate drinking on Facebook. No styrofoam cups, no Solo cups, anything. Regardless of whether or not you're in letters or over 21.

Also, we are no longer allowed to share function costs with other sororities or fraternities... i.e. no mixers. Even a "date party" with XYZ is pushing it apparently.

I agree with the picture restrictions. Sure it might not be the best image to project to the community, but lets let the girls have the opportunity to make some decisions for themselves. It isn't as if a drunken picture or two is going to hurt the girls, PNMs or anyone else. The potential of the pictures having any affect on lawsuit exposure is minimal and if we did everything possible to minimize lawsuit exposure, we wouldn't have sororities to belong to because they would be isolationist, boring, convents.

[macallan25]

Yeah, SAE at Oklahoma almost got royally screwed in '05 over some pictures.

[AlwaysSAI]

Originally Posted by adpiucf

ADPi considers requiring anything of the new members outside of the approved new member education plans/all-chapter requirements to be hazing. So unless the entire chapter is invited to participate or it is an all-Greek Panhellenic sponsored event like New Member 101, it could be seen as hazing according to our view.

That's SAIs policy all the way. We've had some trouble with it. You know, there used to be requirements of pledges that were not hazing, but helping the MIT to get integrated into the chapter. Like interviewing sisters-nope, no more. Technically, we don't even have a big/lil program. Each pledge is assigned a sister to help her during pledging, but technically it's not a big, oh and technically, I don't have a G-big or a GG-big either.

I think it's getting a little extreme. Like, I don't even feel like I know hardly any of the girls that came in during the spring. But, I can understand why those rules are in place--no matter how un-fun it makes their MIT period.

Phi Sigma Pi is a whole different animal in itself. We have hazing policies, but there are also things for us to finish during pledging that is outlined in our national constitution as part of the process. Our biggest thing is that, as a brother we are not allowed to drink, smell, hold alcohol in our hands--anything--if an initiate is around. Even if they are drinking, we can't.

[Tom Earp]

Originally Posted by macallan25

Yeah, SAE at Oklahoma almost got royally screwed in '05 over some pictures.

WOW, I am actually sure They Got Screwed as they showed pictures of being stupid and in a R M position that they should not have been in!

SAE is not pure as the driven snow! To many reports that come in about screw ups in RM!

Realize the problem and try to deal with it.

Grow up, SAE is not a Snow White Fraternity!

[macallan25]

Originally Posted by Tom Earp

WOW, I am actually sure They Got Screwed as they showed pictures of being stupid and in a R M position that they should not have been in!

SAE is not pure as the driven snow! To many reports that come in about screw ups in RM!

Realize the problem and try to deal with it.

Grow up, SAE is not a Snow White Fraternity!

So you know what happened? You know the situation? You know the illegalities that took place on the part of the person that turned them in? Also, I don't go to Oklahoma dumbass. Thanks though.

You are nothing short of an idiot, drunken buffoon. Spare me your self-righteous garbage.

[DGTess]

The ones I've read all treat college students as children.

My philosophy. Treat them as adults. Expect them to act as adults. Set out the consequences for NOT acting as adults, and follow through.

[Boodleboy322]

The initiatives and work that our brotherhood has attained in regards to Risk Management are superb. However, when chapter specific traditions begin fading away because the fraternity starts getting too paranoid it doesn't rub off on the older alums that good. I'm on board with legal issues, anti-hazing, etc but for crying out loud when the chapter begins eating granola bars and going to bed early you lose some of the experience. J/K on the granola and sleeping early but you get my point.

Regards,

Boodleboy322

[TechSigmaNu]

Well I know of the risk reduction our policy holds and it is a pretty scrutinizing piece of material. I mean they say that we cannot have people ride on the float during homecoming. That is just being nit-picky. But the ideas dealing with alcohol I totally approve of, because they are there to limit us from getting tickets, getting hurt, or hurting other people. So I mean, we pay a chunk of change for insurance but our risk reduction policy won't even let us get to that stage and doesn't that just defeat the purpose of having insurance? I mean not completely but it does affect it a lot!

[ΑΓΔSquirrelGirl]

International, no. Chapter, yes. But that is partially my fault, so I can't talk.

[Sigkapash]

i think anyone who gets mad and thinks they are being hazed and its a risk managment issue for having a scavenger hunt, that doesnt involve illegal actions, shouldnt be a part of the greek world in the first place. I just joined my sorority and my entire pledge class wanted to do a scavenger hunt but we couldnt because people have complained in the past about it. They pretty much ruined it for the rest of us.

[AGDee]

I'm surprised I haven't said this in this thread yet, because I think it every time I read it...

The vast majority of these rules, especially things like the scavenger hunts, are set by our insurance companies. We have to have liability insurance and they dictate these things. The inter/national organizations don't have a lot of choices with these rules.

[Drolefille]

Originally Posted by AGDee

I'm surprised I haven't said this in this thread yet, because I think it every time I read it...

The vast majority of these rules, especially things like the scavenger hunts, are set by our insurance companies. We have to have liability insurance and they dictate these things. The inter/national organizations don't have a lot of choices with these rules.

This.

[Zeta13Girl]

Personally I think its kind of funny that two of the service fraternities on my campus are able to do more than we are with our new members ie: sister visits, scavanger hunts...etc.

At 6 years old my parents started having scavanger hunts at our birthday parties. twelve years later and I'm a legal adult and its not safe for me to do a scavanger hunt either as a new member or an initiated sister??? hmmm...

All activities must be optional for new members, but as an initiated sister the same optional activities are mandatory for me??? hmmm....