News from the Industry

Two opinion pieces in national outlets this week highlight voices that argue for reconsidering single-gender status and taking a more aggressive stand against racism, respectively. The first is a New York Times opinion piece written by Stanford sorority member Kiley Roache; she makes a case for radically changing the Greek system on campus. The benefits and merits of Greek life are worth defending, she writes, but those who support Greek life also have a blind spot when…

News from the Industry

Inside Higher Ed,The Tribune of San Luis Obispo, and the Associated Press, among other outlets, reported on the decision by California Polytechnic State University President Jeffrey Armstrong’s decision to suspend all Interfraternity Council (IFC) fraternities and Panhellenic sororities following multiple reports of racially charged incidents on campus. 

Syracuse University has suspended engineering fraternity Theta Tau after video footage surfaced that the school…

News from the Industry

The California Polytechnic State University (Cal Poly) chapter of Lambda Chi Alpha Fraternity outraged many on campus after a photo circulated showing a member in blackface. Lambda Chi Alpha apologized in a statement, saying the fraternity held a competition that grouped members into teams represented by different colors. One team chose black, and “that is why the person’s face was colored,” said the fraternity’s president. The student has resigned from the fraternity,…

Beginning at 9:00 AM ET, Thetas, friends, and family members can visit www.PansyPatch.org to send CASA pansies to those they care for. Not much will look different on PansyPatch.org, but every $5 pansy from 9:00 AM to midnight ET will be restricted to National CASA. The best part is if we reach $15,000 in 15 hours, a generous Theta donor has committed to adding an additional $15,000 to our CASA pansy total!

How You Can Help
Just like our annual #GivingTuesday fundraiser, the success of #CASAPansyD…

News from the Industry

On Monday, the Louisiana House unanimously supported legislation that would make hazing a felony. The bill, called the “Max Gruver Act” is named after the 18-year-old Louisiana State University (LSU) fraternity pledge who passed away last fall due to coerced alcohol consumption. Individuals convicted in cases of hazing-related deaths could receive up to five years in prison and fines of up to $10,000. The bill passed the House and is now headed to the Senate for…

News from the Industry

The Pennsylvania State Senate judiciary committee unanimously advanced anti-hazing legislation proposed by the Senate majority leader in response to last year’s death of Timothy Piazza. The legislation includes significantly harsher penalties for those responsible for hazing, and it also includes a controversial forfeiture clause with implications for fraternity and sorority property. The full Senate is expected to take up the measure upon their return from Easter…

News from the Industry

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, PennLive, and ABC News (among others) are reporting that lawmakers in Pennsylvania have introduced new anti-hazing legislation that would create ‘tiers of possible charges’ that could be filed against students or organizations in instances of hazing. The legislation would also call for fines of up to $15,000 per incident to be assessed against colleges and universities when hazing occurs. The Post-Gazette piece includes comments from both…

News from the Industry

The University of Kansas garnered national news attention after the Interfraternity Council halted the activities of its 24 fraternities. The national organizations of two fraternities suspended their Kansas chapters after allegations of hazing. Under the ban, only philanthropic and service events will be permitted in the near term, reports Inside Higher Ed.

Four individuals have been indicted in the death of Maxwell Gruver, a student and fraternity member at Louisiana…

News from the Industry

A reporter with WBIR-NBC, a local broadcast affiliate in Knoxville, spoke to National Panhellenic Conference (NPC) Executive Director Dani Weatherford about the sorority community’s advocacy to ensure that protections for single-sex organizations are included within the reauthorization of the Higher Education Act.

In South Carolina, a group of parents with children who died in college hazing incidents gathered to discuss how they could prevent such tragedies from occurring…