Clemson University in South Carolina suspended all fraternity activities this past Tuesday after a Sigma Phi Epsilon pledge died during a fraternity run. The school cited the alarming number of other fraternity offenses in the past month as other reasons for the suspension.
Sophomore student Tucker Hipps, 19, was found dead in a nearby lake under a bridge just a day before the suspension. His head injuries suggest that he probably fell more than 20 feet from the bridge and hit rocks in the shallow lake, according to police reports. Hipps apparently went for a jog with the fraternity around 5:30 a.m., and frat members said reported Hipps missing around 1:45 p.m. when they realized he didn't return with them. The eerie 911 call can be heard here.
Currently, the police don't believe that Hipps' death was related to hazing and said they would have nothing more to say about the case. However, the school paper The Tiger News said there were allegedly "reports on social media" that hazing played a part in his death. The national office of Sigma Phi Epsilon is investigating Clemson's chapter for these hazing allegations.
Hipps' death is just one of 15 serious frat-related incidents since the beginning of the school year at Clemson, said Clemson University spokesperson John Gouch. Gail DiSabatino, Clemson's vice president for student affairs, has cited alcohol-related medical emergiences, sexual misconduct and violations of the law and code of conduct as other reasons for the suspension of all 24 fraternities' social and initiation programs.
"These behaviors are unacceptable and mandate swift and effective action to protect students," DiSabatino said. "There is no higher priority than the safety and welfare of our students."
A vigil was held for Hipps on Tuesday. Many students retweeted the picture @ClemsonParties posted with the caption, "Here's to all the lives you impacted. Thank you Tucker Hipps."
Clemson University has been having a shaky year. In April, six Clemson students were arrested on felony drug charges. Only a few weeks ago, Clemson made news for requiring new students to complete a quiz about their sexual history as part of Title IX training for public universities to prevent sexual misconduct. The requirement to take the quiz was then suspended after complaints that the quiz was too intrusive. It has now been altered. And on Monday, a hazing lawsuit filed by a former student against the soccer team went to federal court.
But Clemson's fraternitites aren't the only ones feeling the heat for issues like hazing, alcohol and drug misuse, sexual misconduct and student death. These problems plague Greek life, especially fraternitites, on campuses nationwide.
The investigation continues for the death of Rutgers student Caitlyn Kovacs, who apparently died due to alcohol-related reasons at a frat house party, according to police reports. The frat members announced their deepest condolences and said they would be cooperating with ongoing investigation. The university hasn't responded to the incident, however, with any suspensions or policy changes yet.
Just this past Monday, Wesleyan University officials announced that residential fraternities will be required to accept both women and men as full members. The new requirement is part of the university's response to "highly publicized incidents of sexual violence" that Wesleyan's board of trustees asked the school's president to address. This past March, in a lawsuit against Wesleyan's Xi Chapter of Psi Upsilon, a student alleged that she was raped before onlookers at the fraternity's house on campus. A student survey following the publicized lawsuit found that 47 percent of respondents felt less safe in fraternity spaces.
Clemson's suspension of all frat activity actually stands out in a sea of colleges and universities who seem reluctant to deal with frat-related incidents head-on. Issuing statements of apologies and creating vague policy changes seems to be the popular route for most colleges and universities, but it isn't enough for the students whose lives are impacted negatively by the issues themselves.
What do you think of Clemson's fraternity activity suspension and what other colleges are doing to deal with fra-related issues, collegiettes? Comment below!