Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity has been sentenced to a three-term probationary period in addition to "an extensive series of educational requirements" for hazing and alcohol violations, according to a campus-wide email sent to the Dartmouth community by Associate Dean of Campus Life April Thompson on Friday. The Organizational Adjudication Committee found SAE responsible for hazing new members and disorderly conduct in 2009 and serving alcohol to underage students in 2009 and 2011, according to the email.
In the email, Thompson said that SAE admitted to specific acts in 2009 that constitute hazing, including driving blindfolded students off campus and having pledges enter a "splash pool filled with food." The OAC, a panel composed of students, faculty and staff, however, did not find substantial proof of more extreme violations.
"The OAC did not find a preponderance of evidence that SAE engaged in the most egregious of the allegations detailed in the report and did not find a preponderance of evidence that SAE hazed new members in 2011," Thompson said in the email.
SAE has undergone "well-documented changes" after 2009 to eliminate all forms of hazing, according to SAE President Michael Fancher '13.
The OAC keeps its deliberations about responsibility and appropriate sanctions confidential, Thompson said. Thompson and some students interviewed by The Dartmouth compared the SAE hearing to those of Theta Delta Chi fraternity and Alpha Delta fraternity during Fall term. All three hearings involved hazing-related allegations leveled against the fraternities that resulted in the OAC convening in full.
The hearings also prompted discussion regarding "the definition of hazing," Thompson said in an interview with The Dartmouth, attributing the different outcomes of the hearings to unique hazing-related incidents and the role of previous disciplinary action in deciding the severity of a sentence.
There is currently no policy in place to address the timeliness of sentences in relation to the actual occurrence of violations, Thompson said. The OAC took the three-year time lapse between violations in 2009 and sentencing in 2012 into consideration, according to Thompson.
Fancher said that SAE members feel the sentence is "excessive," especially in light of the changes to hazing policies that the current brothers implemented.
"I am worried that it sends the wrong message to campus that people who openly talk about the past will be prosecuted by the College," Fancher said in an email to The Dartmouth.
Some students interviewed by The Dartmouth expressed confusion about the situation, given that the students potentially guilty of hazing violations in 2009 have already graduated, while those who were hazed in 2009 are present for the sentencing. The College's decision to sanction SAE positively reflects on the way College handles hazing, according to Ari Hunter '14.
"I thought it was accurate," Hunter said. "Over Dimensions, parents were put at ease."
Per the sanction, SAE must adopt a new member education plan approved by Greek Letter Organizations and Societies Director Wes Schaub, establish a new alcohol management plan and participate in "campus-wide educational programming," according to the email. SAE has already begun to plan its own educational programming and has been working with faculty and administrators since February to start a campus-wide education initiative about initiation rituals, according to Fancher.
"The committee wants to support what they already started," Thompson said.
She said that the OAC added more structure to the program and incorporated time frames, which bear punitive consequences if not achieved.
"Should SAE fail to meet these expectations within the time frames established, or if any further violations occur, SAE could be suspended or have its recognition revoked," Thompson said.
Thompson said she recognized the diverse student opinions about the sentencing, and she emphasized that the College's goal is to prevent violations.
Fancher said the sentence will not affect the fraternity's ability to hold social events or participate in the rush process during Fall term.
