Cornell University, PHC

EXTENSION NEWS!

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The Cornell Daily Sun article

A Cornell Daily Sun Opinion piece

Panhellenic Extension: Adding another sorority

 

The Panhellenic Association is in the process of Extension.  This is the National Panhellenic Conference term for the process by with a College Panhellenic adds an NPC sorority to their council.  It is a long preocess with a wonderful result.  The Panhellenic is sifting through applications from other National Panhellenic sororities to decide which three will be selected to presnet on campus this fall.  Of the three chosen one will be selected by the Extnsion committee to start the next sorority at Cornell University.  Stay tuned for updates as they become available.  In the fall of 2011 the Cornell Panhellenic will have 12 Panhellenic sororities!

 

 

Kappa Kappa Gamma - Kappa Dogs

 

       

 

Friday, October 22, Kappa and SAE hosted their annual Collegetown hotdog stand, Kappa Dogs, from 10pm to 2am. Hungry passersby eagerly ate the delicious hotdogs, complete with the condiments of the patron's choice. Kappa was able to raise almost $700 for their philanthropy, Reading is Fundamental. Thank you to everyone who indulged in a hotdog!

   

Alpha Epsilon Phi - Shop for Sharsheret Sale

   

We all know that being a student at Cornell can be a challenge; especially when you want to look great and the Ithaca Mall is your only shopping option. The sisters of Alpha Epsilon Phi recognized this issue and decided to host a clothing and accessories sale in Willard Straight Hall to combat the problem. On Tuesday October 19th, different vendors arrived in Willard Straight Hall with beautiful clothing, jewelry and accessories to provide the ladies of Cornell University with unique fashions for their wardrobe.  Featured at the sale were scarves, jewelry, bags, clothing, and gifts. Each vendor donated 10% of all the purchases made to Sharsheret, Alpha Epsilon Phi's national philanthropy.  Sharsheret is an organization dedicated to helping young women with breast cancer seek treatment and support during their fight against the disease.  Thank you so much to everybody who stopped by the sale- by shopping you also helped out a great cause and we really appreciate your support!

    

Delta Gamma's Anchor Slam

 

 

As Ithaca, New York celebrated the arrival of Fall with its annual Apple Festival on October 2nd, the Chi Chapter of Delta Gamma celebrated its mission to “Do Good,” by hosting one of its annual philanthropy events, Anchor Slam, to support their national philanthropy Service for Sight.  The event was a huge success and the turn out was greater than DG could have hoped.  Anchor Slam served not only as a fun Saturday afternoon activity, but also as a way for Cornell students to give back to the community.  

  

Alpha Phi's Ivy Man

 

The Alpha Phi - Delta chapter recently held its fall philanthropy event, a male beauty pageant! Ivy Man 2010 featured 11 of Cornell's most charming men showing off their beauty, brains, and brawn - all for a good cause. This year we introduced the first ever People's Choice award, allowing the audience to vote for their favorite contestant through separate donations. Junior Adam Belfer took the crown, earning a standing ovation for his Cornell themed music video. The event was extremely successful and our chapter raised over $2500 for the Alpha Phi Foundation. 

  

Alpha Xi Delta's Philanthropy Twister Tournament

This past October 1^st, Alpha Xi Delta held its sixth annual Twister Tournament! The tournament had a great showing with Team Lanky (Phi Delta Theta) and Kappa Delta battling it out for the championship spot. After a riveting display of flexibility on the parts of both teams, Team Lanky out-twisted all the other teams to take home the championship!

 

            This year we also started a raffle to raise more support for Autism Speaks. The sisters of Alpha Xi Delta would like to thank everyone who came out to support the event – our amazingly flexible participants, everyone who participated in the raffle, and everyone who came to watch and support a great cause. With your help, we raised over $300 for Autism Speaks!

 

Alpha Chi Omega's AlphaTraz Philanthropy

 

 

Alpha Chi Omega held their first annual "Alphatraz" philanthropy event on Friday October 15 from 7-9 pm in RPCC Multipurpose room and the event was a blast!  A Chi O was able to raise over $1500 for the Ithaca Advocacy Center with help from Phi Delt, Sig Pi, Phi Psi, Phi Tau, Phi Sig, AEPi, Llenroc, Sammy, SigEp, ZBT, and Pi Kapp.    The way the event worked was two participants from each fraternity were "locked up" in a decorated jail cell and were able to perform their choice of song, act, routine etc. in order to get "bailed out" and raise money for charity.  Each participating fraternity received a percentage of their earnings to be donated to the charity of their choice as well.  Sig Pi was able to raise the most money and were able to donate a higher percentage to their charity of choice.  Overall, the event went extremely well and Alpha Chi Omega looks forward to making "Alphatraz" a yearly event!

  

FAQ's Regarding the Recommendations to Amend the University Recognition Policy:

 

Q:  What are the specifics to the amendment?

 

A:  There are three specific points:

• Alcohol and other drugs can have no place in recruitment, new member education, initiation, or intake of any form.
• There can be no tolerance for hazing, in any form, at any time.
• We must examine and establish an appropriate time period for intake/initiation processes to occur so as to avoid an unreasonable impact on a student’s academic performance.

 

Q:  Will all Freshman and Sophomores be prohibited from drinking during their first two years?

 

A:  No.  The amendment is aimed specifically at the recruitment and education/initiation/intake of students into the Greek system, both formally and informally. 

 

Q:  Are the Trustees and the OFSA creating all the details of this change and handing them down to the students?

 

A:  No.  The Trustees and OFSA are detailing only the three specific points in the first question.  It is up to the IFC, the PHC, and the MGLC to create the details around the “how” these objectives will be reached.

 

Q:  Will this take place immediately?

 

A:  No.  The plan at the moment is for the Tri-Council (IFC, PHC, & MGLC) to create the details of the “how” to achieve these objectives....and to achieve compliance. By the end of December 31^st, 2012, a bit over two years from now.  Ultimately we want to help chapters comply with the amendment and give chapters the tools to have continued success with recruitment-even though it may look different.

 

Q:  Doesn’t the Administration realize that this amendment will change completely how rushing and new member education is done at Cornell?

 

A:  Yes, we do realize that. However, the intent is to enable and support rushing and new member education aimed and focused at the values of the Greek chapters on campus.

 

Q:  Don’t you realize that the freshman will all be up in arms about this due to the fact that they find that alcohol is necessary for a good and meaningful rush?

 

A:  No that is not accurate from our data.  We have recorded anonymous questionnaires of freshmen (and transfers) going through rush for the last several years and the significant majority of the respondents said that the events WITHOUT alcohol where they got to talk to current members of the Greek Chapter were by far the most meaningful.

 

Q:  I understand that this only affects Fraternities as they have been the only ones protesting?

 

A:  No that is not accurate.  This affects all Greek Chapters as they recruit/rush, conduct member intake, and have some form of new member education/initiation.  All three Councils have their own challenges to address in these areas.

 

Q:  Why is the University Recognition Policy itself being modified?

 

A:  The University Recognition Policy is the agreement between chapters and the University that details what expectations and requirements chapters must fulfill in order to receive the benefits of recognition.  This is the only document, outside of the Campus Code of Conduct, that details the University’s expectation of these organizations, therefore, it is the appropriate document for these details.  Furthermore, we have heard from student leaders and alumni over the years that have tried to guide the Greek community in this direction in the past that it is unreasonable to expect a student leader to take a stand like this if the University has not first been clear on its position concerning these issues.  This is the appropriate way to support student and alumni leaders who are trying to create a healthier Greek experience.  Additionally, many of these rules are currently reflected in the Event Management Guidelines.

 

Q:  Has the Recognition Policy ever been changed in the recent past and why?

 

A:  Yes.  In the spring of 2009 the Fraternity and Sorority Advisory Council proposed an amendment that would require all fraternities and sororities that own house to have a full sprinkler and alarm system installed.  The Board of Trustees passed that amendment, and we are currently working with chapters to identify which need work done to comply, and agreeing upon a reasonable timeline for the work to be completed.

 

Q:  Why doesn’t the administration support the idea and principle of self-governance that has been the cornerstone of the Greek system at Cornell?

 

A:  They do.  In fact, this amendment is meant to support the self-governing Greek community as it works to address these difficult issues.  It is critical that the Tri-Councils work to identify methods to support chapters through this transition, which includes creating a method for enforcement and adjudication, offering support and leadership around alternative recruitment efforts, and renovating new member education programs.

 

Q:  No other University has gone to these great lengths to curtail Greeks from drinking at specific times during their tenure on campus; why is Cornell doing this?

 

A: False. In fact most other campuses that have a Greek system have already addressed these issues, in a variety of ways.  Some have gone as far as closing the system down completely, some have created a policy with a hard edge enforcement plan, others have just ignored the system altogether, exposing the groups and the students that belong to a high level of criminal and civil liability.  We would like to believe that by working together, supporting the self-governing community through its leaders, that we can identify the most beneficial way to implement these changes in our community.  We are not interested in causing catastrophic damage to the system, nor are we trying to push the problematic behaviors off-campus. We do want to reduce alcohol abuse, and other alcohol and drug related problems, together.

 

Q:   When will the Trustees learn the specifics of the proposed amendment changes to the Recognition Policy and when will they take effect?

 

A:   The recommendation for amending the University Recognition Policy (the three bulleted points listed above) will be presented at the meeting of the Student Life Committee of the Board of Trustees October 29.  Assuming the Board of Trustees passes this Amendment at their October meeting, they will go into the University Recognition Policy shortly after that with the expectation that the end goals will be achieved on or before December 31, 2012. 

 

Q: Will Greek students be allowed at this discussion? 

 

A: Yes. The Tri-Council Presidents are always invited and participate in the discussion.

 

Q: Are you worried that the changes to the University Recognition Policy will decrease the size of the Greek community at Cornell?

A: No. The ingenuity of the Cornell students and the pride and relationships they build in their fraternity and sorority membership will continue.  Chapters will still offer leadership, interpersonal skills, friendship, a home away from home, networking, and social opportunities.  The recruitment experience will just look a little different.  This may even attract new chapters to Cornell as our policies will be more in alignment with the policies of inter/national organizations.

Q: If a chapter breaks the rules will they immediately be removed from campus by the Administration?

A: No. Fraternities or sororities who violate any policies will still undergo fact finding and be heard by the student led Greek Judicial Board for violations.  In cooperation with the Greek Judicial Board, chapters may go the Review Board.  The Review Board, which reviews Recognition, is usually the result of egregious behavior and a series of past violations.  Education and rehabilitation are the first steps in the judicial process.  The student leaders will have an opportunity to create agreed upon sanctions as they implement their plans to comply with the amendment to the Recognition Policy.  Recent examples of student leaders creating the sanctions/ramifications for behavior are the 2006 Rush Resolution and the 2009 Resolution regarding a new member class GPA drop.