Eight more Ohio State fraternities under investigation or on disciplinary probation

Mary Kidwell, Sarah Szilagy, Owen Milnes
Tue, 13 Apr 2021 01:47:13 +0000
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Since Pi Kappa Alpha’s student organization status revocation by Ohio State Jan. 27, eight more Ohio State fraternities have been placed under investigation or disciplinary probation for violation of the Code of Student Conduct.

The Alpha Tau Omega fraternity, along with seven other Greek Life organizations at Ohio State, have violated either the Code of Student Conduct or International or National Headquarters Conduct.? Credit: Casey Cascaldo | Lantern File Photo

An update to the Sorority and Fraternity Life Conduct History revealed eight more Greek life organizations that are under investigation for or have been found to violate the Code of Student Conduct.

Since Pi Kappa Alpha’s student organization status revocation by Ohio State Jan. 27, Phi Gamma Delta, Sigma Alpha Epsilon, Alpha Tau Omega, Beta Theta Pi, Sigma Phi Epsilon, Delta Theta Sigma, Delta Tau Delta, Acacia and Alpha Gamma Sigma have been placed under interim suspension or have been sanctioned for code violations.

The disciplinary record update comes after the reintroduction of anti-hazing legislation into the Ohio Senate March 10. The bill, known as Collin’s Law — named after Collin Wiant, an Ohio University student who died in a hazing incident in 2018 — would increase the penalty for hazing from a fourth-degree misdemeanor to a second-degree misdemeanor and, if involving drugs or alcohol, a third-degree felony.

None of the national organizations responded to a request for comment at the time of publication.

Ryan Sheffield, president of Ohio State’s Interfraternity Council and a third-year in business, said he believes many of the citations were due to the chapters violating the Together as Buckeye’s COVID-19 safety guidelines.

“We’ve worked with all of these offices and all of our member organizations for years now and we’ll continue to do so,” Sheffield said.?

Sheffield is a member of Phi Gamma Delta, commonly known as FIJI, which has been placed on disciplinary probation through Dec. 19, 2021 with additional sanctions. The fraternity was found in violation of university rules or federal, state and local laws and failure to comply with university or civil authority.?

Ben Harris, president of FIJI, did not respond to a request for comment at the time of publication.?

This is FIJI’s second charge since their March 7, 2017, charge for alcohol and hazing, according to Sorority and Fraternity Life disciplinary records, which date back to March 7, 2017.

University spokesperson Dave Isaacs said in an email that Greek life organizations are expected to follow university and legal guidelines.?

“It is the intent of the university to uphold the Code of Student Conduct, to promote the education and development of students and to provide a framework for future success of student organizations,” Isaacs said.

Sigma Alpha Epsilon, commonly known as SAE, was placed on interim suspension Feb. 2, pending an investigation into possible endangering behavior, alcohol and drug violations, failure to comply with university or civil authority and violation of university rules or federal, state and local laws.?

SAE has been cited six times since 2017, according to the disciplinary records. Five of those citations included alcohol violations.

Andrew Guagenti, president of SAE at Ohio State, declined to comment.

Alpha Tau Omega has been placed on interim suspension and is on disciplinary probation through May 8, 2022, pending an investigation into possible hazing, student conduct system abuse, failure to comply with university or civil authority and violating university rules or state, federal and local laws. The fraternity was previously placed on interim suspension Jan. 22 for endangering behavior, failure to comply with university or civil authority and violating university rules or state, federal and local laws.

This is the chapter’s third charge since February 2019, according to the disciplinary records.

Preston Rice, president of Alpha Tau Omega, did not respond to a request for comment at the time of publication.

Beta Theta Pi has been placed on disciplinary probation and has deferred revocation of registration through May 8, 2022, for failure to comply with university civil authority, violation of university rules or federal, state and local laws and student conduct system abuse — failure to comply with sanctions.?

Michael Shcharber, president of Beta Theta Pi, declined to comment on the charges.

This is the fourth punitive action the university has taken against Beta Theta Pi since Oct. 20, 2017, according to the disciplinary records — all including alcohol violations.

Related: A cycle of sanctions: How repeatedly disciplined fraternities stay on campus

Fraternities have been a part of Ohio State’s campus since the late 1800s, and in the more than 100 years since their establishment, nothing has ever caused the university to remove a frat from campus — not even death.

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Sigma Phi Epsilon, commonly known as SigEp, is on disciplinary probation through Dec. 19, 2021, due to failure to comply with university or civil authority and violation of university rules or federal, state and local laws.

SigEp was placed under disciplinary and social probation in February 2019 for alcohol violations, according to disciplinary records.

Casey Petrae, president of SigEp, said in an email that the chapter worked closely with the university “to reduce risks and ensure SigEp provides a safe environment for members and guests” after some members participated in a gathering in February that violated COVID-19 protocols.?

“This spring, we decided to have minimal social events, so that we can focus on training our members, implementing COVID safety measures, and working with our alumni to enhance our risk management plans for when we begin holding social events in the fall,” Petrae, a second-year in finance, said.

Delta Theta Sigma and Delta Tau Delta both have cases under review with restrictions in place that the community should be aware of and are unable to host or participate in any in-person events or gatherings while the outcome of the conduct process is pending.?

Both were cited for failure to comply with university or civil authority, and Delta Tau Delta is also under investigation for violation of university rules or federal, state and local laws, according to disciplinary records.

Delta Tau Delta has been cited three times since April 26, 2018, according to the disciplinary records. The organization was placed under disciplinary probation for hazing in June 2019 and for alcohol in April 2018.

Ethan Garee, president of Delta Tau Delta, did not respond to a request for comment at the time of publication.?

This is Delta Theta Sigma’s first charge since the disciplinary records began.

Daniel Russell, president of Delta Theta Sigma, did not respond to a request for comment at the time of publication.

Acacia has been placed under disciplinary probation through May 8, 2022, for failure to comply with university or civil authority, violating university rules or federal, state and local laws and student conduct system abuse. The fraternity was placed on interim suspension Jan. 22 for those charges and endangering behavior.

Konstantinos Kantas, president of Acacia, declined to comment.?

Alpha Gamma Sigma has been placed on interim suspension as of April 2, 2021, for hazing and alcohol violations.?

Cody Teigtmeier, president of Alpha Gamma Sigma, declined to comment.?

Alpha Gamma Sigma was previously placed on disciplinary probation in July 2019 for alcohol violations, according to disciplinary records.

Max Garrison contributed reporting.

This story was updated April 13 at 9:24 a.m. to include Guagenti’s decline to comment.

This story was updated April 12 at 10:58 p.m. to include comment from Petrae.?

Correction: A previous version of this article stated FIJI is under disciplinary probation through May 2022 instead of Dec. 19, 2021. The article has been updated to reflect this correction.