Delta Sigma Pi occupied an off-campus house on the corner of Birkel and Packer, which today is deemed the “Packer House” which is a “graduate student center.” Building 94, which now houses Zeta Tau Alpha, was occupied by Sigma Alpha Mu. Of note, Alpha Chi Rho occupied building 93, which became the Alpha Chi Omega house. Our staff works with fraternity and sorority members to provide support alongside educational, cultural, and leadership development programs which meet their needs beyond the classroom. A riot erupts on campus and a tree is burned down. Plus, check out our large selection of official gear for men, women, and kids, exclusive items, and more! At the 2014 Lehigh-Lafayette game, an alumnus flew a private plane over Goodman Field with a banner that read “Bring Back FIJI.”. Spring Semester 2013: It was my experience that, by this semester, the majority of parties were occurring in cramped off-campus apartments instead of the grand fraternity houses on the Hill. The consultant’s report, released Monday, includes 10 “key recommendations” for resolving those problems. The Chapter had meetings in which the pledges were required to kneel for a sustained period and recite facts and receive direction as to their required tasks for the upcoming week. Roughly 34% of undergraduates are members fraternities or sororities. (Author’s note: These quotes are from The Company He Keeps, one of the few books providing a somewhat-unbiased modern study of Greek Life). Fraternity reviews, ratings, and rankings for Lehigh University - LU greek life - Greekrank He said he hopes more alumni and faculty involvement in the fraternity system will fix some problems. Greek life makes up a large portion of Lehigh’s social life, with just under 30 percent of Lehigh undergraduates participating in Greek life as of fall 2017, the lowest it has been during 2013 to 2017, the years in which the Office of Student Affairs conducted a study. Is Forced Redirection of New Tabs Ethical? Though Lehigh’s administration didn’t ultimately pull the trigger, the sorority being in “some type of trouble for the last nine years” was a direct result of the school’s policies. Spring 2016: John Smeaton, Vice Provost for Student Affairs, retires after 32 years with Lehigh. 2013: Princeton Review ranks Lehigh as having the #2 worst Town-Gown Relation in the country. This “history” is not something that should be consumed by an outsider–especially a prospective student–to reach conclusions regarding Lehigh University. Flat-rate shipping on your order. 1928: Max McConn, the first Dean of Students at Lehigh University, publishes his book College or Kindergarten? A congratulatory blog post written by one of his colleagues is considered to be tone-deaf and is widely mocked in campus circles. Shop Specialty Apparel - Greek at The Lehigh University Bookstore . Each tour guide, after being thoroughly vetted as someone who won’t go off script, is ordered to tell prospective students that there are other meaningful social events on campus, such as Lehigh After Dark events and the one concert each semester. The fraternity does return to campus in 1993 and reclaims the house (presumably in 1994). Delta Tau Delta does not return to campus, and Pi Kappa Alpha, a recognized group operating off-campus, is awarded the house in Fall 2012. When I attended in the early ‘80s, Lehigh had as many fraternities (36) for an undergraduate population of 4,000 as Penn State had for a community of 20,000. “We need to present a focus to non-Greeks and freshmen so that they will want to join our house and be a part of something really good.”. This is the 13th fraternity removed from Lehigh since 1990. Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube Snapchat Tumblr. March 2018: Alpha Chi Omega sorority kicked off after an infamous “road rally” scavenger hunt list goes viral. After receiving the report (roughly one month later), Farrington provided further comment: After spending six months analyzing Lehigh’s system, Npower, an Indianapolis-based consulting firm, issued a 32-page report detailing problems, most of which college officials already knew existed. I’m not going to give money after I graduate.”. That’s pretty bad. At Lehigh, Greek life plays a major role in the college experience. Late 1980s (estimate): Lehigh bans kegs from campus. Spring 2015: Tim Wilkinson, Director of Lehigh’s OFSA, leaves for Wake Forest. March 2008: In the same week, Sigma Alpha Mu is kicked off and receives a ten-year ban from campus housing because pledges were found to be “significantly” intoxicated. 1908: Lehigh’s Board of Trustees allows fraternities to build their chapter houses at Sayre Park, also known as “the Hill.” Before this, most fraternities occupied/owned houses in South Bethlehem. 27 … The sorority is closed by national headquarters for low membership (source). If the whole fraternity system is guilty, then isn't this an indictment of our educational institutions in general? 1999: Fittingly, Lehigh is ranked #1 in the country for “lots of beer” by the Princeton Review. In an email to the university community, president John D. Simon and Ricardo Hall, vice president for student affairs, announced a suspension of all new member activities. There are never breaks. Tau Delta Phi does not return to campus. Of the 30 fraternities and sororities reviewed this past academic year, nine chapters earned gold status, 13 earned silver and four earned a bronze ranking. Non-affiliated members have been allowed to live there, but the building has been passed over for long-term group housing. Lehigh’s website says that there are 25 fraternities and sororities on campus. Other reports frame this number as “six months.” The firm appears to have no digital record whatsoever. Some of these were purchased by Lehigh and converted into administrative buildings. I have to believe that a huge chunk of Greek alumni that looked back fondly on their days on campus are outraged with the wholesale closure of their chapter houses and will never contribute again. Saying the new drinking policies force them to use drugs and sap the campus of its spirit, Lehigh students signed a petition demanding revisions to Project IMPACT and a meeting with administrators. Mid 2019: Theta Xi becomes the first fraternity to win an appeal against dissolution. Some are banning alcohol entirely; others are drying out aspects of student life, such as fraternities and athletic events, or cracking down on underage drinkers. BETHLEHEM, Pa. - Lehigh University is letting Greek Life resume on campus. Lehigh Announces Partnership with Indian Institute of Technology Bombay. They can reclaim house in 1995.” Sigma Phi Epsilon does return to campus. July 2017: Kappa Sigma loses recognition after a string of incidents. Lehigh President John Simon Shares a Message of Thanks. Can Party School Rankings Benefit Colleges? Lehigh University Art Galleries puts democracy, in all its forms, on display. And aside from the proposals, some fraternity members don’t like what they consider the report’s negative tone. Fall 2016: The Lehigh University Police Department begins using the drone purchased 15 months prior to bust MoCos, also known as Morning Cocktails. (Morning Call), “The students I met with are not your typical animal-house fraternity type,” [Jud Horas, a rep from Sammy’s national headquarters] said. It is worth mentioning that there was only ever one other Playboy list, in 1987, and, though rumored, Lehigh was not featured on it. The Office of Fraternity & Sorority Affairs (OFSA) works with students, alumni, faculty, staff, parents, and other invested constituents to enhance the development of Lehigh University students through Greek membership. Pi Kappa Alpha is suspended for a disciplinary violation. He said he hopes more alumni and faculty involvement in the fraternity system will fix some problems. “It’s not about trying to stop students one drink at a time,” says John Smeaton, vice provost for student affairs at Lehigh in Pennsylvania. FAX 610-758-6692. (Morning Call). For Lehigh freshman men, the question used to be which house you’d be pledging, not whether. It was Princeton at 56% followed by Notre Dame at 53% and then Lehigh at 51%. It is the fifth organization removed in just one year. Late 1991: Tau Epsilon Pi is closed by national headquarters due to membership and financial problems. The newsworthy items that have actually been preserved, in aggregate, reflect poorly on Lehigh’s Greek scene, Lehigh’s Office of Fraternity and Sorority Affairs, and Lehigh’s administration. The fraternity’s membership was so strong that they went on to recruit a large unofficial pledge class. (Morning Call retrospective). Baker University. 2005: Chi Omega sorority disbanded. Though there are still isolated incidents through the 2013 spring semester, the police eventually stop “raids” and shift their manpower to busting off-campus parties. To this day, I regard the blog post as one of the weirdest and most opaque statements I have ever read. “Lehigh, like many universities and colleges, has a long Greek tradition, and in recent years, particularly the past five to 10 years, we’ve seen less and less student interest in Greek life,” said President Gregory Farrington. https://totalsororitymove.com/top-25-best-universities-for-greek-life After the normal party ends, another begins and lasts until morning.”, Another, named “Deborrah,” wrote: “People think that a school of our academic caliber would be full of dorks who sit in their rooms all day doing equations. March 2008: Beta Theta Pi is kicked off jointly by its national organization and Lehigh. “I’d say at least two-thirds of the fraternities kidnap their pledges,” MacKinnon said, “and we just got caught.”. MacKinnon said he was not aware that the decision could be reviewed. And the house jobs will be shared equally among the members, he said. The Chapter required that, on a rotating basis, one of the new members serve as SCB (“Senior Class Bitch”) each week. Late 2001: Phi Delta Theta fraternity is removed by the national organization. The school tried to put a stop to it by sending letters about “officially recognized groups” home to freshman parents, but this proved futile. This was not received well by the campus community, as the fraternity and its members were respected. 1992: “Theta Delta Chi fraternity suspended for four years for hazing pledges.” Theta Delta Chi does return to campus. There were fraternities to suit every interest and personality…, (Author’s note: I recommend reading the full article linked above. August 2014: Kevin Clayton, an Alpha Tau Omega alumnus, becomes Lehigh’s interim president. November 2017: Sigma Chi loses recognition after a string of alcohol-related offenses. 1981: Delta Tau Delta is suspended for four years and their house is converted to a dormitory, though it eventually returns to Delta Tau Delta. 2006: US News & World Report covers Lehigh’s initiatives to curb binge drinking and excessive partying. The current President of Lehigh was never greek, but is pretty cool about the fraternity system. That left only 12 active chapters in the country. I would definitely recommend Lehigh University to someone interested in a specific program at the school, or someone who either plays a sport or is interested in Greek life. Unfortunately, it does not appear that this book was ever digitized. Lehigh has had a Greek life blog that mostly reported infractions and sanctions. "911 system." Fraternities and sororities, or Greek letter organizations (GLOs), also collectively referred to as "Greek life", are social organizations at colleges and universities.A form of the social fraternity, they are prominent in the United States and Canada.Similar organizations exist in other countries as well, including the Studentenverbindungen of German-speaking countries or the Goliardia in Italy. It is perhaps the only contextualization of Lehigh’s old-versus-new clash that has been formally prepared and preserved.). July 1978: Animal House movie is released, loosely depicting a Dartmouth fraternity. May 1991: Sigma Alpha Mu suspended for hazing violation until fall 1993. Shop Greek at The Lehigh University Bookstore . School spirit erodes significantly, never to recover. 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