Industry Update Provided by NPC

Several instances of racial slurs or racist posts from fraternity and sorority members continued to earn coverage in the past week. The Daily Mississippian reports the vice president of programming for the Ole Miss Interfraternity Council did not sign the joint letter from the institution’s fraternity/sorority community calling for the relocation of a Confederate monument on campus. WBIR-TV and Chattanooga Times Free Press report that Sigma Chi International…

Grand Council Action

At its meeting Friday, June 12, Grand Council received reports on housing, Theta Foundation, strategic planning, COVID-19, and racial justice; considered an officer appointment and a membership termination appeal; and made the following vice president appointments effective July 1.

• Audit Committee Chairman - Michelle Geiger
• ERM Committee Chairman - Cynthea Yestal
• ERM Committee Member - Jane Dick
• Foundation Trustee - Cate Bibb
• FHC Director - Erica Ochs
• Personnel…

Industry Update Provided by NPC

Staten Island Live reports a State University of New York at Albany student who was pledging Alpha Xi Delta women's fraternity has filed a lawsuit against the organization. According to the plaintiff and her attorney, the women pledging were told they were participating in a scavenger hunt and the plaintiff states she was subjected to a salacious act that was recorded and shown to other people. The plaintiff also has sued the owner of the off-campus building…

Industry Update Provided by NPC

Colleges were closed in a rushed and chaotic fashion two months ago, disrupting students’ lives and costing tens of billions of dollars in lost revenue, according to a survey by the American Council on Education, a trade group. But opening up, though vital to the survival of some institutions, is proving much more intricate than shutting down, The New York Times reports.

The Chronicle of Higher Education reports that with infectious-disease experts forecasting…

Year-End and Expense Reports 

The Fraternity’s 2019-20 fiscal year ends June 30. Because some of your expenses may be for the 2020-21 fiscal year, please note on your submitted expenses if they are for the 2019-20 or 2020-21 fiscal year.

2019-20 expenses will be accepted until, but no later than, July 31. No exceptions to this deadline will be granted, as the Fraternity’s audit begins in August. Please submit your invoices in a timely manner. Also remember that, in accordance with the…

Industry Update Provided by NPC

Inside Higher Ed and The Advocate report that a federal appeals court said the parents of a Louisiana State University (LSU) freshman who died in a 2017 hazing ritual can pursue claims that the university disciplines its fraternities and sororities differently, and that male students who enter fraternity/sorority life face a greater risk of injury than females. Stephen and Rae Ann Gruver, whose 18-year-old son Max Gruver was a freshman at LSU when he died, argue…

Industry Update Provided by NPC

The U.S. Department of Education announced sweeping changes on Wednesday in how colleges must handle sexual-assault and sexual-harassment complaints, bolstering protections for accused students and employees. The Chronicle of Higher Education reports the long-awaited changes in the enforcement of Title IX, the federal gender-equity law, will require colleges to hold live hearings and allow cross-examination when adjudicating sexual-misconduct complaints. The new…

Industry Update Provided by NPC

The New York Times reports on the trade-offs that college-going students and families may be willing to make in an era marked by the coronavirus pandemic. While past cohorts may have focused on a college experience that expands their intellectual horizons and introduces them to friends and mentors that will carry them through life, it appears that those goals may be receding among student priorities—at least when compared to the ultimate goal: a prestigious…

Spring is budget season, and this spring is no exception. Despite the financial disaster facing Kappa Alpha Theta, we do have budgets to prepare. Grand Council will consider a very lean Fraternity budget at its meeting on May 8. That budget is based on 25% fewer collegians returning to school in the fall and 25% fewer new members recruited. Of course, the budget will be adjusted when those forecasts are adjusted to actuals. Despite deep cuts to programs, travel, and the grandest…