GRAND VALLEY
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M O N D A Y, N OV E M B E R 2 7, 2 0 1 7 // VO L . 52 N O. 2 7
Banned Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity expelled for five years following incidents of hazing, alcohol use
BY ANNE MARIE SMIT NEWS@LANTHORN.COM
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reek Life organizations have gained negative attention nationwide recently, with many universities cracking down on behavior that doesn’t align with its values. After a number of conduct violations over several years, Sigma Phi Epsilon (Sig Ep), Grand Valley State University’s oldest fraternity, was banned from campus for the next five years. The ban wasn’t the first punishment for the fraternity. Last year, Sig Ep went on probation in response to underage drinking and hazing incidents, but soon after the fraternity went off probation, other incidents were reported. The decision to ban the fraternity was made after an investigation of an incident in September where a student consumed too much alcohol, hit their head and was hospitalized. Stephen Glass, acting vice provost for student affairs and dean of students, said the probation was a time for the fraternity to pause and take stock of their values and the consequences of their actions, but it wasn’t successful, which made investigators realize that more action needed to be taken. “Being a registered student or-
ganization is a privilege on this campus, and part of the privilege is you follow the rules and you don’t do any activities that would be dangerous or demeaning to any Grand Valley State University student,” Glass said. “We’re not talking about one or two incidents—we’re talking about widespread activity, and we can’t have that organization here.” Glass said when students apply to be members of a Greek Life organization at GVSU, they are expected to meet certain standards and expectations, the most important being that it upholds the values of the university. “(Underage drinking and hazing) certainly doesn’t match the values of Grand Valley State University,” Glass said. “If they’re a registered student organization, then we, of course, expect them to not break the law and to not do behaviors that would put any of our students at risk. That should be a given. If they can’t do that, something’s wrong, and it needs to be addressed.” Robbie Triano, a senior at GVSU and member of the Sip Ep fraternity for the past four years, said the main violation of the fraternity was the underage drinking. He said many underage students drink in college, but because Sip Ep members are expected to maintain certain values, they are more heavily scrutinized
PHILANTHROPY: Members of Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity during the St. Baldrick’s fundraiser, which raised over $20,000 for childhood cancer awareness in 2017. The group was banned for hazing and alcohol violations. COURTESY | SIGMA PHI EPSILON
than other students. “People drink in college all the time,” Triano said. “You don’t see people who aren’t affiliated with an organization getting in the same trouble that we (are), but because we wear the letters, we take the cost.” The purpose of Greek Life organizations, Glass explained, is to promote strong leadership skills and foster a sense of belonging for students, not to
place them in situations that may humiliate them or threaten their safety. The university and some members of fraternities seem to disagree on what constitutes an unsafe party environment. Most fraternities involve alcohol and hazing, Triano said. “I don’t think they really understand that we come to college to not only get an education but to meet friends and have a good
WEATHER
time,” Triano said. “I really don’t think they see that message.” Many universities have decided to deal with alcohol and hazing incidents by doing away with Greek Life organizations altogether. Glass said that won’t be GVSU’s response. He believes Greek Life organizations are a positive SEE FRAT | A2
GOVERNANCE
Grand Rapids adopts ‘equal services’ policy BY MEGAN WEBSTER MWEBSTER@LANTHORN.COM
do their part to make the campus as safe as possible this winter. “I think the biggest thing is what we refer to as periscope driving,” Caton said. “What that is, is you’re running behind or it’s really cold outside and you don’t want to have to scrape off your entire windshield or brush it off, so you start your car, a little tiny circle has defogged or thawed so you can see through that one circle and that’s how you drive. “I’ve seen this on our campus way too many times, and we have staff out there doing crosswalks, we have so many pedestrians on this campus, that if your vehicle didn’t have enough blind spots as it is already, having that one just limited vision can be quite detrimental.” Simon encourages pedestrians
To ensure that all community members feel safe in Grand Rapids, the city commission passed the “Equal Services Regardless of Immigration Status and/or National Origin” policy, which ensures that all community members—regardless of their immigration status— are provided with equal services and their rights are respected. The policy, which was passed and went into effect Saturday, Nov. 18, prohibits public servants from making improper threats of deportation and coercing individuals regardless of immigration status or national origin. It also prohibits representatives of the city from verbally abusing anyone based on their or their family’s perceived immigration status or national origin. This project had been in the works since the end of last year. At that time, the community relations commission (CRC) of Grand Rapids took it on in partnership with the mayor and city manager. The topic arose when a group of concerned individuals, who majorly belonged to the Hispanic community of Grand Rapids, brought to light the issue of immigration and fear. Patti Caudill, diversity and inclusion manager of Grand Rapids, explained that upon taking up the project, the committee created a subcommittee to ensure that the goal was met of easing community members’ fears and ensuring inclusion. “They identified a subcommittee to begin working on and looking at what the city of Grand Rapids can do to help alleviate some of the fear in the community and show the community that we are a welcoming community,” Caudill said. Once the subcommittee was assembled, the group spent numerous months participating in community engagement. This included, but was not limited to, one-on-one meetings and small group meetings with community members and affected people in the community to identify the best method to support everyone in the community. Caudill said drafting and passing
SEE WINTER | A2
SEE POLICY | A2
FREEZING: Students brave the cold to wait for the bus. The winter season brings challenges for GVSU’s Department of Public Safety and GVSU Facilities Services each year. This year, both organizations are implementing new methods to keep drivers and pedestrians safe on campus during the season. GVL | LUKE HOLMES
GV Facilities urges drivers, pedestrians to stay alert during winter months BY SARAH HOLLIS NEWS@LANTHORN.COM
Winter is the season that brings fires, hot chocolate and, unfortunately, turbulent weather. With this in mind, Grand Valley State University’s Department of Public Safety and Facilities Services are working to make campus safe for drivers and pedestrians during the long winter months. “We’ve been very busy preparing for snow,” said Edward Simon, grounds operation supervisor for Facilities Services, via email. “The department is reviewing procedures, verifying our equipment is ready, getting materials in and training the many people we have helping prepare campus for a safe commute to class. Since we are continually improving our processes, we have made some adjustments to our work and confidently anticipate a safe winter season.
“We have improved the products that are used on campus and have improved our processes by introducing call-in staff at our busiest times, as well as adjusting staff hours
Being part of public safety, we’re always trying to push and offer new ways that students can be safe out on the roads.” OLIVIA CATON Parking Enforcement Supervisor, Public Safety
to monitor conditions overnight.” This year, both departments are bringing new strategies and techniques to their preparation for snow, as well as improving upon their existing policies. “Being part of public safety, we’re always trying to push and offer new ways that students can be safe out on the roads,” said Olivia Caton, parking enforcement supervisor for GVSU’s Department of Public Safety. “We have our Facebook page, Twitter, some other social media that’s out there that we try to push information out and keep students updated with. Now that we have a student employee who can help with the websites and the social media, I think we’ll be better about that this year.” These departments work to keep GVSU’s campus safe, but they also have advice for both pedestrians and drivers on campus so they can