In the time leading up to students’ return to on-campus or off-campus, Lehigh and the state of Pennsylvania have issued a number of guidelines and regulations. The Panhellenic Council, Cultural Greek Council, and Interfraternity Council are committed to upholding and adhering to the rules both Lehigh and the local authorities have issued in an effort to Help Keep Lehigh Safe. Lehigh’s COVID-19 policies and guidelines can be found at Lehigh’s COVID-19 Community Responsibility & Commitments and within Lehigh's Fall 2020 Student Social Contract. The policies and guidelines outlined by Lehigh in the Social Contract have been signed by every Lehigh University student whether they are returning to live on-campus or off-campus. Every student is also obligated to complete the Fall 2020 Student Expectations Course, monitor their health through HawkWatch self-reporting, and also complete COVID-19 testing. Remember to take proper health and safety precautions, such as wearing face coverings, practicing social distancing, washing your hands and disinfecting surfaces frequently. If you do not feel well or are experiencing symptoms, stay home and do not come to campus until receiving further direction. Health & Safety Guidelines for Student Organizations have also been communicated.
Ensuring safety and adherence to the policies that have been outlined in Lehigh’s announcements is crucial to our success this semester. Lehigh has collected residential information for where students will reside this semester so that the health and safety of our community can be closely monitored. In the event that a student's behavior does not adhere to Lehigh’s policies, students will be referred to the Office of Student Conduct and investigated. Every student in order to return to campus or their off-campus homes has signed off on the social contract and subsequent guidelines, and the Panhellenic Council, Cultural Greek Council and Interfraternity Council are committed to holding member organizations accountable for their actions with the guidance from the Office of Student Conduct. Any type of gathering must be a maximum of 10 people and social distancing guidelines including personal protective equipment must be adhered to. To further hold individuals accountable, all three councils have created an Anonymous Reporting Form for on and off-campus students to report unsafe behavior that could jeopardize the safety of our community. This reporting form will be monitored by tri-council leadership and every report will be considered. Lehigh University also has a COVID 19 - Behavior Expectation Reporting Form. It is essential that students hold themselves and their peers accountable in order to successfully complete the semester and stay safe. Please refer to these articles as a reinforcement of what could happen as a consequence of our actions. There have already been several campus populations that have moved all undergraduate courses online or removed students from campus and the surrounding areas as a result of the students’ actions. Please continue to use your best judgement and contribute to a safe and healthy Lehigh campus.
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Under these circumstances, it is clear that the ways of living in or around Lehigh University will very much be different. With that, our councils must adjust our recruitment processes to adhere to the rules and guidelines that we are enforcing in the Lehigh and Bethlehem communities. The Panhellenic Council, Cultural Greek Council and Interfraternity Council will still be actively recruiting; however, all formal recruitment events will be virtual until further notice. In order to ensure a successful virtual recruitment, all councils will be utilizing ChapterBuilder as a tool to interact and engage with interested students in a safer manner. These matters will be discussed at our Go Greek Webinar on August 25th, at 4:30pm, and 26th, at 7:00pm. We highly encourage all interested students to sign up for a webinar time here to learn more about the Panhellenic Council, Cultural Greek Council and Interfraternity Council and how we will operate in the midst of Covid-19.
It is important for us, both as fraternity/sorority members and community members, to acknowledge and understand the important roles we play in creating a safe learning environment. In an effort to ensure the safety of ourselves and others, it is critical that we follow the guidelines outlined by Lehigh and local authorities. We urge our students to be safe and to be smart.
As Governing Council Presidents, we are optimistic about the cooperation of our members, and are committed to enforcing these initiatives and being leaders on our campus. Our respective councils and other leaders on our Executive Boards will do our part to educate our community and work to provide structure and guidance to lead us all through these challenging times together. We understand the situation we are all in might not be ideal, but this semester must be different at Lehigh. Individuals in organizations that do not act according to these initiatives and the values outlined by Lehigh will certainly be held accountable. Organizations who fail to observe these guidelines will be dealt with on a case by case basis. To reiterate, all cases will be taken seriously and could result in the respective council’s judicial boards or referral to the Office of Student Conduct and Community Expectations. We are depending on each other to get through this crisis — please follow the rules and stay safe and be smart.
Julia Voelzke, Panhellenic President
Mariah Lopez, Cultural Greek Council President
Preston Read, Interfraternity Council President
