[Dg] Fraternities Move Away From Party Image

Fri Oct 5 16:46:09 EDT 2007

I'm not saying it's a good thing or a bad thing.  Just what the media here in Central MO is saying.  My only personal spin on it is this: If it's sincere then why invite all the media attention?

Kelly Royse-Keefe

NEMO '80

-----Original Message-----
From: Evan Follmer <evan.follmer at gmail.com>
To: Unofficial General Discussion Group for Delta Chi <dg at delta-chi.net>
Sent: Fri, 5 Oct 2007 2:48 pm
Subject: Re: [Dg] Fraternities Move Away From Party Image

They can treat it as a joke if they want... it's better than having derogatory and shameful comments blasted onto front page headlines for hazing, alcohol/drug abuse, even death.  I for one WILL applaud the Sig Eps at Mizzou for at least trying to do something of value for the fraternity population as a whole.  So what if they're covering up for past mistakes; maybe they are, maybe they're not.  Regardless, I would hope that others will follow suit and attempt to do something more meaningful in their own Chapters.  If a domino effect could happen, the image of Greek life could change greatly in a very short period of time! 

ITB,
Evan Follmer 
Central Missouri '05

On 10/5/07, kellykeefe at aol.com < kellykeefe at aol.com> wrote:

As I live in the area I can say that the media is all over this and, frankly, it's not good.  Rather then applaud an attitude that realizes their past mistakes and attempts to correct them they're treating this like a joke.  And perhaps the Sig Eps are going a tad bit overboard... 
-----Original Message-----
From: Joseph DeFazio <deltachi8 at hotmail.com>
To: dg at delta-chi.net

Sent: Fri, 5 Oct 2007 8:33 am
Subject: Re: [Dg] Fraternities Move Away From Party Image

I was just about to post this same article. I enjoyed reading it, thanks for bringing it to the group, Brother Brown.  

"As God as my witness, I thought Turkeys could fly." - Arthur Carlson, WKRP in Cincinnati 

>From: Marquez Brown <marquezbrown at hotmail.com> 
>Reply-To: Unofficial General Discussion Group for Delta Chi ><dg at delta-chi.net> 
>To: <dg at delta-chi.net> 
>Subject: [Dg] Fraternities Move Away From Party Image 
>Date: Thu, 4 Oct 2007 07:08:05 -0400 
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>Fraternities Move Away From Party Image 
>By ALAN SCHER ZAGIER Associated Press Writer 
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>COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) -- The basement of the Sigma Phi Epsilon house at the >University of Missouri-Columbia is filled with familiar fraternity icons >like a well-worn pool table, stacks of violent films like "Kill Bill" on >DVD, and of course, the stench of stale beer.  
>A closer look reveals a much different scene. With the soothing sounds of a >"Zen Cafe" CD playing in the background, Sig Ep brothers listen raptly as a >campus yoga instructor leads them through a series of contortionist poses >during an 8 a.m. workout. 
>Early morning yoga is just one of the changes at the fraternity since the >Missouri chapter adopted its "Balanced Man" program in 2006 - just a few >years after the university punished the chapter for hazing.  
>Now, there are trips to the opera, wine tastings and documentary film >screenings. And by eliminating the pledging system - a tradition of >initiation critics say encourages hazing - new members are treated as >equals from the start.  
>"I didn't really feel like the traditional fraternity life was for me," >said Tony Brown, a sophomore journalism major at Sigma Phi Epsilon. "I >wanted a place I could come into and immediately feel respected."  
>For years, fraternity pledges were forced to perform menial tasks, memorize >arcane fraternity history and willingly submit to verbal and sometimes >physical abuse - all to prove their loyalty and devotion to the group.  
>That all changed at the Missouri chapter of Sigma Phi Epsilon when the >national organization cleaned house last year following the hazing incident >in which a group of pledges were told to "kidnap" an unwitting older member >- a prank that caused worried onlookers to call campus police.  
>The national group kicked out a dozen members who didn't measure up to >their new standards, which include a minimum 2.6 grade point average, said >chapter president Keith Ziercher. Another 41 members chose not to return >under the revamped system.  
>For the members who remained, skepticism ran high. 
>"It was kind of difficult for us," Ziercher said. It's been a hard >transition." 
>After the national purge, membership had dwindled to 32 men at Missouri. >But over the past two semesters, another 25 have joined - many attracted by >the opportunity to build friendships through mutual respect, not servitude.  
>"We have ways of building brotherhood without the fear that goes along with >hazing," said Brown. "We can accomplish the same thing." 
>After decades of wrestling with the stigma and the legal liabilities >created by alcohol abuse, cheating, poor grades, hazing and other problems, >fraternity leaders across the country are looking to reinvent - if not >restore - the ideals of going Greek.  
>At Missouri, four of the 28 traditional Greek fraternities have eliminated >pledging. The change isn't new on campus - Lambda Chi Alpha took that step >nationally more than three decades ago. 
>Nationally, programs such as Beta Theta Pi's "Men of Principle," Lambda Chi >Alpha's "True Brother Initiative" and the Sigma Phi Epsilon "Balanced Man" >effort seek a return to the roots of campus Greek life. Organizers talk of >honor, virtue, scholarship, civic engagement and other core values.  
>Nearly 80 percent of Sigma Phi Epsilon's 253 chapters participate in the >voluntary initiative, which began in 1992, said Matthew Ontell, who directs >the national Sigma Phi Epsilon initiative. Ontell said the changes have >helped make Sigma Phi Epsilon the nation's largest fraternity.  
>"We're doing our best to destroy the frat boy stereotype," he said. "This >is what Greek life is supposed to be about - holding men to a higher >standard." 
>© 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be >published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Learn more about our >Marquez L. Brown"Excellence can be attained if you care more than others >think is wise, risk more than others think is safe, dream more than others >think is practical, and expect more than others think is possible."- >President Clinton  
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