The following message was shared with first-year male students as well as their families
The fraternity and sorority community is an important part of the campus experience for many students, and the Office of Fraternity and Sorority Affairs (OFSA) strives to create a distinctive learning-centered experience. We feel strongly that you should be informed about options across the fraternity and sorority community so that you have the opportunity to make educated decisions should you choose to affiliate with a Greek-letter organization. To that end, we provide many information sessions for students to learn about the fraternity and sorority experience, and this letter is another initiative to provide you with important information.
Lehigh University currently has 14 officially recognized international fraternities. We also want to make you aware that some groups may exist off campus that are not recognized by the University. It is important that you are aware of some potential issues if you choose to affiliate with one of the unrecognized off campus groups rather than one of Lehigh’s 14 recognized fraternities.
Several fraternities have lost recognition in recent years from the University and their international headquarters because they failed to comply with policies or guidelines. The 2017-2018 academic year was particularly difficult and unprecedented as three fraternities—Sigma Chi, Pi Kappa Alpha, and Kappa Alpha—lost recognition and no longer exist at Lehigh University. Some of these formerly recognized groups may continue to operate without University recognition, oversight, or approval and are considered unrecognized groups. Unrecognized groups are not permitted to use Lehigh University's name or image, secure University group housing, or represent themselves as an official part of the University community. We do not have confidence that unrecognized groups operate with diligence to promote student growth and development; provide proactive and preventative measures to foster wellness and safety; nor abide by University guidelines with regard to recruitment, new member education, academic support, and other areas vital to the successful management of an organization. Additionally, unrecognized groups operate in the absence of reasonable and prudent oversight as well as lack resources and support provided to other student organizations.
While we cannot predict the outcome of membership in an unrecognized group, it is important to alert you to the possible concerns and consequences regarding the well-being of students that choose to affiliate with or join an unrecognized group. There exists no meaningful partnership between the University and students, alumni volunteers, and international headquarters staff associated with unrecognized groups. These unrecognized groups will not receive an invitation to regain University recognition in the near future or in subsequent academic years while they continue to exist in direct violation of University policy.
We also invite you to review our website to learn more about Lehigh’s recognized chapters. These chapters have rich and lengthy histories at Lehigh and many have been recognized for excellence by the University and their respective international headquarters in the areas of membership development, academic excellence, leadership, and service efforts. The content of the OFSA website is robust and you will find a number of resources, including Accreditation reports, grade reports, membership statistics, and conduct history for our fraternities. All of these resources are valuable tools should you consider membership in a fraternity and choose to participate in recruitment in January 2019. The current recognized Lehigh University fraternities include the following:
Alpha Epsilon Pi
Alpha Tau Omega
Chi Phi
Chi Psi
Delta Chi
Delta Upsilon
Kappa Alpha Psi
Phi Delta Theta
Phi Kappa Theta
Phi Sigma Kappa
Psi Upsilon
Sigma Phi Epsilon
Theta Chi
Theta Xi
If you have questions regarding any this information please contact the Office of Fraternity and Sorority Affairs at (610) 758-4157 or by e-mailing Infrasor@lehigh.edu.
Thank you,
Ashley M. Baudouin
Assistant Dean of Students/Director
Christopher J. Mulvihill
Associate Dean of Students
Katherine W. Lavinder
Dean of Students