Frats Propose Formal Changes to Greek Life Policies

Members of campus fraternities challenged University party policies and guidelines pertaining to fraternity events at a meeting Monday, where they presented a draft of proposed modifications to existing rules that have received a largely negative response from the Greek community.

Last semester, the Interfraternity Council created a committee composed of its own members to address concerns raised over the current Greek party policies. The committee has worked with Victoria Lopez-Herrera, assistant director of Greek Life and Leadership Development, to compile a list of concerns and suggestions for the new policies.

Columbia’s party policies apply to all functions where alcohol is served both on and off campus, and regulate the type and quantity of alcohol served while mandating University supervision. The policy requires at least one person over the age of 21 within the Greek group to attend an event training program to learn how to properly register and host Columbia-affiliated social functions.

Former president of the InterGreek Council Margy McCullough, CC ’08, can only recall one registered party throughout her entire period of involvement in Greek life.

“There’s just been this cycle of unregistered parties. Then the unregistered parties are busted, and then the fraternities have to come to the judicial board and we hear the same piece over and over and over again,” McCullough said. “We had two judicial hearings every week.”

Yet the expenses associated with registering seem to dismay some Greek organizations. The IFC committee claims that the high cost of paying compulsory University-trained proctors $20 per hour discourages sororities and fraternities from registering their parties with the University. The funds for proctors come solely from fraternity and sorority budgets and are not supplemented with funds from the general budget of the InterGreek Council, the governing board of all Greek groups.

The proposed changes would permit unpaid fraternity members to mutually self-proctor each others’ chapter events after undergoing event monitor training.

The committee also expressed concern over the requirement that parties be registered 10 days in advance and suggested reducing the time frame to five.

“It’s definitely a step forward,” said Thomas Meister CC ’09 and president of Phi Gamma Delta. “I just don’t know that people are going to sign on en masse to observing the University policy. It’s just something that’s not really that in touch with Greeks here. I don’t know what the long-term results will yield.”

Under current policy, proctors additionally must ensure that party attendees consume no more than one drink per hour. The proposed changes would instead allow attendees two drinks per hour.

When asked about Lopez-Herrera’s involvement in the IFC committee, Meister said, “She’s gotten mixed reviews. She has to make a lot of difficult decisions ... [and sometimes] those decisions are unpopular.”

“She’s working to benefit the greek community but at the same time she is an administrator and she has to police us. But ... she’s fair,” said Josh Milstein, CC ’10 and the president of Delta Sigma Phi who supports the proposed changes.

Over the next two weeks, fraternity presidents will discuss the draft with their chapter members and the IGC general body will vote on whether to approve it at the body’s next meeting on Feb. 25. If accepted, the proposed changes in party policy will be submitted to Lopez-Herrera, who will present them to the administration on behalf of the IFC. To date, discussion on party policy with the administration has worked exclusively through her.

samantha.saly@columbiaspectator.com.