Greek Recruitment Pregame: Assessment Insight

The Office of Fraternity and Sorority Affairs launched the Greek Recruitment Pregame this fall.  This program was required for all students interested in joining a fraternity or sorority and also dubbed as a 5x10 for Inclusive Leadership.  In total, 633 students participated in the program.  Learn more about the experience in the assessment insight included below. 

Delta Chi Sponsors Fundraiser with Bethlehem Area Education Foundation

 

 

Delta Chi's four cardinal values are promoting friendship, developing character, advancing justice, and assisting in the acquisition of a sound education. 

Through fundraising money for the Bethlehem Area Education Foundation, the brothers of Delta Chi are looking to spread our values by supporting and advancing the local schools. 

The purpose of the Bethlehem Area Education Foundation's event similarly aligns with the values of Delta Chi:

-Mobilize the community to promote and foster the Bethlehem Area School District.
-Support educator innovation to advance curriculum and dynamic learning environments.
-Support school district programs that emphasize Core Learning, Stretch Learning, Student Engagement andPersonal Skill Development.
-Foster community and family partnerships.
-Raise and leverage necessary resources to support the mission of the Foundation.
-Develop a collaborative spirit and supportive relationships between the Bethlehem Area Education Foundation, the Bethlehem Area School District and the Bethlehem Education Association.

Delta Chi is participating in the Bethlehem Area Education Foundation's annual fundraising gala at the Sand Casino, sponsoring a table to benefit the city's schools and enable its teachers to pursue special projects with its students. The event has a minimum fundraising mark of $500, however Lehigh Delta Chi has set the objective at $5000 because all proceeds are going to the district and the tremendous faculty who advance its goals. While $5000 is our goal it is certainly not our ceiling, and any extra proceeds will go directly to the foundation. Any donation, small or large, is greatly appreciated by both Delta Chi, the community, and the students of Bethlehem!

The Link to the GoFundMe Page is below: 

https://www.gofundme.com/dx-supports-bethlehem-schools

Please Contact Lehigh Delta Chi's Philanthropy Chair, Matt Gibson, mlg220@lehigh.edu, with any questions or comments on this campaign!

Le/Laf: Step Up LU

Le/Laf: #HawksFlyTogether

Sigma Chi Fraternity: Loss of University Recognition (Conduct Update)

Update: 11.16.2017
Sigma Chi Headquarters staff confirmed that the Fraternity has voted to suspend the Alpha Rho charter at Lehigh University.
 
Update: 11.16.2017
Sigma Chi chapter leadership notified the Office of Student Conduct and Community Expectations and shared that the chapter would not be appealing the decision to dissolve the chapter. As a result, the disciplinary process is complete.

Original Post: 11.15.2017
Sigma Chi Fraternity was placed on interim social suspension on November 1, 2017, following an incident on October 13, 2017,  in which two students were hospitalized for alcohol-related medical emergencies and another student was cited for underage drinking.  When one student required medical assistance while at a Sigma Chi off-campus residence, none of the members called for help.  Additionally, Sigma Chi Fraternity General Headquarters suspended all chapter activities pending an investigation and review of the chapter.   

Separately, the fraternity was placed on Disciplinary Deferred Dissolution beginning on April 27, 2017, through December 18, 2017, following three significant alcohol violations in one calendar year.  This disciplinary status placed the organization on notice, meaning any further violations of the Code of Conduct would result in the dissolution of the organization. 

The Office of Student Conduct and Community Expectations conducted an investigation, and the chapter accepted responsibility for all charges brought against the chapter.  As a result, the University Committee on Discipline (UCOD) convened on Tuesday, November 14, 2017, for a sanctions-only hearing to resolve the charges listed below:

Respect for Community O1 (Organizational failure to seek medical attention)

Violation of Part II.d. of the Medical Amnesty Policy which states that student organizations are required to seek medical attention for members or guests when any potential health risk is observed.

Respect for Community I1B (Social policy - 1.D.11.a - Irresponsible Distribution of Alcohol)

Violating the Lehigh University Social Policy 1.D.11.a (11. Irresponsible distribution of alcohol is

prohibited. a. Any occasion where the atmosphere or circumstances are such that the intended or likely outcome is to either abuse alcohol or become intoxicated. Examples of irresponsible distribution of alcohol include but are not limited to kegs, funnels, shot parties, hotel parties, Beirut games, pong ball, scorpion bowls, chugging contests or other organized drinking games.)

Respect for Community J1 (Encouraging Others)

Encouraging or facilitating others in actions that violate the Code of Conduct.

Respect for Community A1 (False Information)

Intentionally furnishing false information to a university official, hearing panel, or conduct officer.

Respect for Self A1 (Unauthorized Consumption, Distribution, or Possession)

The unauthorized or illegal consumption, distribution, or possession of alcohol.

After careful deliberation, the Committee dissolved the fraternity effective November 14, 2017 through May 31, 2020.  Dissolution is the loss of University recognition and the privilege to use the University’s name or represent it in any capacity. In addition, the chapter will lose all privileges to use University equipment or facilities, and this includes access to group housing.  

The chapter will be eligible to return to Lehigh at the end of the dissolution period, provided the campus is open to expansion and is subject to recognition processes in place at that time.  Should affiliated students fail to comply with sanctions and operate as an underground or unrecognized group without University recognition, oversight, and approval, this would jeopardize and further delay the chapter’s ability to return to campus.

The Committee gave the following rationale for its decision:

Social events hosted by Sigma Chi over the last 2 semesters has led to multiple students becoming
dangerously intoxicated and even hospitalized. Additionally, the chapter has a history of other alcohol
related incidents over the past two years. The panel believes that the chapters failure to be proactive in the
past has led to this latest incident. While the panel believes that a re-org could have worked at some point
over the past several semesters, we do not believe that this is a solution for what seems to be an extensive
problem.

The chapter retains the right to appeal the decision, and the Office of Student Conduct and Community has informed the fraternity leadership of the deadlines and process for appeals as outlined in the Lehigh University Code of Conduct.  If an appeal is submitted by the Friday, November 17, 2017 deadline, the Disciplinary Appeals Committee will meet to make a determination shortly thereafter.  If the appeal is denied, the conduct hearing outcome will be upheld.  If the appeal is granted, a new conduct hearing would occur.

The fraternity will lose University recognition and access to group housing immediately upon conclusion of the University’s disciplinary process.  Sigma Chi undergraduates living in the facility will not be relocated immediately so as to not disrupt students’ living arrangements mid-semester.  In the interim, the space will be transitioned into a traditional residence facility.  

Residential Services staff are prepared to assist students regarding alternative housing options for the spring semester and thereafter.  Sophomore students are required to live on campus.  Juniors and seniors requesting the opportunity to live on campus will be accommodated; however, these students also have the option of being released from housing contracts without penalty to secure off campus housing.  Additional information regarding on campus housing opportunities and instructions will be shared with students by Residential Services.  Housing-specific questions should be directed to Residential Services at inrsd@lehigh.edu or (610) 758-3500.  Additionally, no decisions have been made regarding the facility and its future purpose for the upcoming year and thereafter.

We recognize that losing a chapter certainly has an impact across our fraternity and sorority community.  Please know that Fraternity & Sorority Affairs is committed to supporting students as they navigate this transition so that they may enjoy a meaningful and worthwhile experience at Lehigh.  

In closing, we are wholeheartedly committed to promoting a fraternal culture of excellence alongside health and safety.  Fraternity and sorority life has a long-standing and proud history at Lehigh where members live by their respective founding principles that foster leadership, service, scholarship, integrity, and friendship.  Together, we will carry on in our efforts to strengthen the fraternity and sorority experience through positive impact, strong leadership, and culture change.  We believe in our community, and our potential is boundless.

Le/Laf: Hail, All Hail Lehigh!

Feature Friday: Sigma Psi Zeta Sorority, Inc.

This week's Feature Friday goes out to Sigma Psi Zeta, Sorority Inc.

Sigma Psi Zeta Sorority, Inc. is a progressive multicultural sorority with roots in Asian/Pacific Islander American women's issues advocacy. They were founded March 23, 1994, at SUNY Albany by 10 women. Sigma Psi Zeta's philanthropy has been to combat violence against women, and they have 33 chapters across the country. 

 

This organization recently received provisional recognition at Lehigh University, which means that Sigma Psi Zeta is eligible to host informational meetings, scholarship events, or community service projects on campus in order to determine if there is interest in growing the organization. The provisional recognition will remain in place for three consecutive semesters beginning in Spring 2018.  Should provisional recognition be successful, the organization will have the opportunity to organize a chapter at Lehigh and welcome women into the organization. 

 

If you are interested in learning more about Sigma Psi Zeta, please feel free to visit their website at https://www.sigmapsizeta.org/ or contact Liz Suizzo at syzvisciana@gmail.com.

 

Back Story: The Cultural Greek Council is exploring opportunities to A) provide more options to students that might be interested in joining the community and B) to raise awareness of the various organizations that fit under the Cultural Greek Council umbrella. Sigma Psi Zeta has performed at two of the Council's annual Yard Shows, and the organization was well received across members and attendees.

Thank you again to the members of the committee that helped evaluate this organization.  They include the following:

Djenne Dickens

Bryce Macomber

Sydney O'Tapi

Corey Gant

Dr. Dahlia Hylton

Aarsenio Perry

Derrick Smith.

Messages Regarding Unrecognized Groups from Student Conduct

Please see below for messages regarding unrecognized groups from the Office of Student Conduct and Community Expectations. 

TO: Members of the Lehigh University Greek Community
FROM: Christopher Mulvihill, Associate Dean of Students
RE: Co-sponsorship / Participation with Dissolved or Formerly Recognized Chapters by Recognized Chapters.

Lehigh University has a long standing tradition of excellence in its Greek Community. The member
organizations are among the finest in the country and our Office of Fraternity and Sorority Affairs is at the cutting edge of programing and education in developing a meaningful Greek experience for individual members.

Being a part of that tradition of excellence is a privilege and it requires that organizations meet certain standards of behavior, as found in the Lehigh University Code of Conduct and as evaluated by Lehigh’s nationally recognized accreditation program. When organizations fail to meet those standards, and fail to utilize the incredible resources available to assist them in doing so, they are removed from our community. Most recently this applies to Kappa Sigma Fraternity. It also applies to other groups that are no longer a part of our community such as Delta Phi and Lambda Chi Alpha, (a,k,a,) “Lambda”.

As these groups no longer enjoy the benefits or carry the responsibility of membership in the community, it is inappropriate for our currently recognized chapters to continue to have a relationship with these groups. Doing so diminishes the work that your organizations do and puts your members at risk, as these groups are not required to participate in the trainings related to health and safety issues that your organizations participate in.

Continuing to grant these organizations a sense of legitimacy through socializing and participating in events with these groups undermines the efforts of the Lehigh University Greek Community to provide life-long benefit to your member’s experiences. It also undermines the messages concerning the positive nature of Greek Life as these unrecognized groups are the antithesis of the best in what Fraternity and Sorority Life represent. At a time where the benefit of Greek Letter Organizations is in question because of the lack of concern for the health and safety of others that is sometimes demonstrated, why would you continue to provide a place for groups that have demonstrated a complete disregard for the foundational principles of Greek Life to exist? Failing to hold these groups accountable for their failures makes those organizations that continue to recognize them complicit in the degradation of our community’s reputation.

Lehigh University has a duty to maintain the integrity of the Greek Community and does so by providing resources to the community that are unmatched for an institution of our size and enacting reasonable policies for the management of the community. With that in mind, the following policies are being enacted:

Organizations that participate in or co-sponsor events of any nature (social, service/philanthropic, or
educational) with formerly recognized organizations will be charged with violations of the Lehigh University Code of Conduct including (but not limited to):

• Failure to comply with the reasonable requests of University officials (including law enforcement) while acting in the performance of their duties.
• Violating any Lehigh University policies, rules, or regulations, including but not limited to, residential living policies (General Provisions for Occupancy) and policies related to the use of the University computer network.
• Encouraging or facilitating others in actions that violate the Code of Conduct. (Kappa Sigma is barred from participating in events sponsored by or affiliated with Lehigh University).

The minimum sanction recommendations for these violations will be Disciplinary Probation (Corporate) for one full semester.
 
This memo should also serve to remind our Chapters that are members of the National Panhellenic Council of the NPC policy on Events with Recognized Fraternities and the congruent local NPC Policy as presented in the September 1, 2017 letter from Brigette Gardner.
 
I ask you as members of the Lehigh University Greek Community to take a stand and honor our excellent Greek Community by not giving away the benefits of membership to those organizations that have failed to live up to our standards.

TO: Members of the Dissolved Lehigh University Chapter of Kappa Sigma
FROM: Christopher Mulvihill, Associate Dean of Students
RE: ON-GOING ORGANIZATIONAL ACTIVITY BY FORMER MEMBERS OF KAPPA SIGMA FRATERNITY

Over the past several weeks it has come to the attention of the University that the members of the recently dissolved Kappa Sigma Chapter at Lehigh University are recruiting first-year students into the non-existent Kappa Sigma Chapter. Furthermore, there was an off-campus party the weekend of October 7, 2017 in which 5 former members were cited for having a disorderly house and over 150 students were seen leaving the party and another citation for a disorderly house over the weekend of October 28, 2017.

These actions clearly violate the sanction of Dissolution that was imposed on Kappa Sigma Fraternity on July 14, 2017. There are several repercussions from the continued existence and operation of the organization both for the now defunct organization and the individual members:
 
For Kappa Sigma Fraternity:
The Kappa Sigma Chapter was dissolved effective July 14, 2017 through July 4, 2019. The failure of the organization to adhere to the dissolved status jeopardizes the organization’s ability to return to campus at a later date. Additionally more active measures to disallow continued activity will be taken:

• No more than two former Kappa Sigma members may participate in intramurals on the same team.
• Any organization hosting or co-hosting social, service, or other events with the formerly recognized Kappa Sigma fraternity or a portion of its members is subject to disciplinary action.
• No former member of Kappa Sigma Fraternity can reserve campus spaces without direct permission from the Dean of Student’s Office,
• Any attempt to circumvent these limitations will result in the organization being barred from returning to Lehigh permanently.

For Individual Members:
Former members of Kappa Sigma Fraternity continue to act as an organization through recruitment and social events. That being the case, continued activity that could be construed as organizational activity on the part of individuals will be adjudicated through the University Conduct Process. As of the issuance of this letter, the minimum recommended sanction for this activity will be deferred suspension for one full semester. Furthermore, activity meant to circumvent the above limitations on organizational activity, will also be adjudicated through the University Conduct System.
 
All former Kappa Sigma members are required to provide the Office of Student Conduct and Community Expectations with their off campus addresses. Failure to do so will result in students being held accountable for failure to comply with this request. You can submit off campus addresses to the Office of Student Conduct at inosc@lehigh.edu.

Lehigh University imposed significant sanctions, including dissolution, against the Kappa Sigma Fraternity because of its repeated violations of the Lehigh University Code of Conduct. The former members of this organization are required to adhere to that decision. Failure to do so will result in significant consequences for the individuals and far reaching ramifications for the future status of Kappa Sigma at Lehigh University.

Lehigh University commends the Kappa Sigma National Office for severing ties with this currently
unrecognized chapter and hopes that they will hold their members accountable through their internal
processes as well.

Feature Friday: Lindsay Wilson, Alpha Phi

 

Being an Orientation Leader at Lehigh is easily the most rewarding and impactful experience I will have at Lehigh. Getting to start off the year working with 80 other people who are just as eager to meet the first-years and make new friends is incredibly refreshing. This was my second time serving as an OL and it was definitely the most meaningful to me. Shifting from my role as a first year OL to my role as a returner OL required a change in mindset in order to succeed. As a returner, I wanted to mentor the first-time OLs and help them feel comfortable in their new role. My experience in Alpha Phi helped me prepare for this role since I serve as a mentor to the younger girls in my chapter. I am very involved on campus and always encourage my sisters to participate in on-campus events and really take advantage of all of the incredible opportunities Lehigh has to offer. My experience in Alpha Phi helped me feel confident taking on more of a leadership role within Orientation this year.

I think the best thing about Orientation is that it encourages you to step out of your comfort zone and interact with people you might not have met otherwise. I think the Lehigh Greek community could really improve by adopting the open and inclusive environment that the Office of the First Year Experience (OFYE) has worked so hard to create. Being able to look beyond our own chapters and meet people in all different chapters and groups on campus would help propel the Greek community to do even greater things for the overall Lehigh Community.

We only have four years at Lehigh and we must make every second of it count. My best advice as both a member of the Greek community and an Orientation Leader is step out of your comfort zone. Make an effort to meet new people and try new things!  

Serving as an Orientation Leader has helped me to be a more thoughtful and impactful member of the Greek community and person. Apply to be an OL when the applications come out!