Virginia men’s lacrosse coach Dom Starsia announced Friday that senior midfielder Shamel Bratton has been dismissed from the team for a violation of team policies. The Washington Post reported that the team’s players voted Wednesday to dismiss Bratton for his third violation of team rules this season and to indefinitely suspend his twin brother, senior midfielder Rhamel Bratton, for his second violation.

“I want to wish Shamel the very best in his future endeavors,” Starsia said in a press release.  “He has made many contributions to the program. At the same time, there are standards of behavior within the framework of the team that we expect to be met by all of our student-athletes. Failure to do so on a consistent basis has resulted in the loss of the privilege of being a member of this team.”

Shamel Bratton already had served two one-game suspensions this season for violations of team policies. He was suspended for an 11-10 win against then-No. 5 Stony Brook Feb. 26 and a 12-7 loss against then-No. 10 Maryland April 2. Rhamel Bratton also was  suspended for the Stony Brook game.

Both Brattons reportedly missed the game because they violated the team’s alcohol policy, which is established by the players. The Post reported that new, stricter alcohol rules were adopted for this season in the wake of the last May’s death of Virginia women’s lacrosse player Yeardley Love and the revelation that eight Virginia men’s lacrosse players – including George Huguely, who was indicted April 18 on murder charges in connection with Love’s death – had been arrested for alcohol-related incidents.

The Post also reported that the Brattons blatantly refused to comply with the team’s alcohol policy and unsuccessfully entreated their teammates to vote to change the policy.

Shamel Bratton, a first-team All-American in 2009 and 2010, ranked fourth on the team with 20 goals and 28 points this season and finished his career at Virginia with 89 goals and 129 points, marks which rank third and first all-time for Cavalier midfielders. Rhamel Bratton, a second-team All-American in 2010, ranks fifth on the team with 17 goals and 22 points. The No. 11 Cavaliers (8-5) conclude their regular season at home Saturday against No. 13 Pennsylvania at 3 p.m.

–compiled by Matt Welsh

Editor’s note: The Cavalier Daily finished its regular production for the academic year Friday, and therefore no additional print editions of the paper will appear during the final exam period. The editors will continue to follow the suspensions as the story develops, however, and update The Cavalier Daily’s website accordingly.

The thought of Greek initiation ceremonies often calls to mind private events and the passing down of secret traditions, but many of the University’s fraternities and sororities take a more public approach to bringing in new members. The Greek organizations on Grounds represented by the National Pan-Hellenic Council, NPHC, and the Multicultural Greek Council, MGC, have a tradition of open initiation ceremonies where all students and even parents of the new members are invited to be a part of the audience. Although the name for these ceremonies varies from organization to organization ­— some are called probates, others emergences or showcases — the purpose of each one is to put on a performance through which new members are revealed.

Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc., a member of the NPHC, had its showcase last weekend. The ceremony took place Saturday evening on the South Lawn.

Before the big revelation, Phi Beta Sigma’s ceremony began with a series of greetings. New members first addressed their fraternity brothers with original raps or songs and then turned to particular guests within the audience. Out of respect, they first recognized the president and the dean of the line, and then the members in charge of organizing the event. Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc.’s ceremonies also always address members of visiting Greek organizations, in particular Phi Beta Sigma, Inc.’s constitutionally-bonded sisters from Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc. Fourth-year College student Sedale McCall, a Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc. member, explained that starting with these acknowledgements is an important marker of respect. Once they are complete, the ceremonies continue by explaining the history of the fraternity before the original showcase begins.

“The most unique thing about our showcases are that they are themed,” McCall said. “When I [joined the fraternity] in 2009 we did a basketball theme.“ This year, the theme was S.W.A.T. team, and members dressed in camo and helmets to perform.

For most probates, or emergence ceremonies, new members traditionally obscure their faces throughout the majority of the performance, only revealing their identities at the end. Rachel Gleason, president of Theta Nu Xi Multicultural Sorority, Inc., said masks or facial coverings which new sisters wear have special meaning for her organization. “Our symbol is the butterfly, hence the term ‘emerge’ or ‘emergence,’” Gleason said in an email, “The emergence signifies the birth of a new butterfly in the Theta Nu Xi family.”

McCall said in addition to wearing masks, this year Phi Beta Sigma, Inc.’s new member line ran through a smoke screen to add to the drama of the fraternity’s performance.

While the MGC showcases like Theta Nu Xi Multicultural Sorority, Inc.’s are similar to those of the NHPC, they differ in cultural traditions and in the types of entertainment they present to their audience. For example, Greeks under the MGC do not “step” like the Greeks in the NPHC. “Step” or “stepping” is a dance style in which performers usually incorporate chanting while using their own bodies as instruments, primarily through stomping or clapping out rhythms. It is associated with the probate or revelation ceremonies of historically black fraternities and sororities.

“As an organization we don’t step out of respect for the NPHC organization because that is their original tradition, but we do salute out of respect for other Greek organizations and other sisters,” said Lisa Batres, president of MGC organization Lambda Theta Alpha Latin Sorority, Inc.

This year the Lambda Theta Alpha Latin Sorority, Inc.’s emergence line was called “Fourtified Devotion,” to represent the four members who crossed into the sorority.

Gleason explained that another purpose of many MGC ceremonies is to highlight the cultural traditions of its members. For Lambda Theta Alhpa Latin Sorority Inc., this means using a specific performance style for their emergence.

“Our chapter at the University is Gamma Alpha, and so they introduce how they were founded by incorporating song, dance and hand gestures,” Batres said.

La Unidad Latina, Lambda Upsilon Lambda Fraternity, Inc. also uses specific movements as part of its new member’s show, but it adds its own personal touch to them. “We use different hand gestures to show respect to other organizations and enter wearing yellow hoods and masks,” said second-year Architecture student Kelvin Grullon, a new member.

Although they vary in form and style, most MGC and NPHC Greeks agreed that the purpose of these ceremonies is not only to present new members but also to demonstrate the history and traditions of their chapters to the community at large. McCall said his fraternity’s probates always have a section where new members recite poems about their organization and give an account of its background since it was founded in 1914. This is historical portion of the ceremony is meant to educate the audience but also to give new members the opportunity to show off their own education.

“It is a two part purpose: one to present the new members to the University [and] the other purpose in a way is to demonstrate what new members have gone through and what they have learned from the process,” Grullon said.

After officially welcoming their newest members, NPHC and MGC fraternities and sororities look forward to next year.

Morris said students have been much more involved with RecycleMania this year, showing the school’s increasing commitment to sustainability. Photo by Thomas Bynum

The University won first place in the state for overall recycling in the nationwide RecycleMania Competition, taking home the Gorilla Prize.

The University also placed 12th nationally for the same prize, which is based on total pounds of recycling recovered.

More than 630 universities in the United States and Canada participated in RecycleMania, Sustainability Outreach Coordinator Nina Morris said. “Normally we do pretty well, but this year was a stellar year,” she said. “It says a lot about [our] recycling program and how committed U.Va. is to sustainability.”

The RecycleMania website lists 18 other competing Virginia schools, including Virginia Tech, James Madison and William & Mary.

Compared to other years, Morris said the University “worked really hard this year on getting more students involved” to promote sustainability in residence halls, dining halls and libraries.

Student employees and volunteers encouraged student involvement by updating a weekly scorecard which showed how the University fared nationally and against Virginia Tech.

“We’ve been [participating] in the competition since 2008, so winning [in Virginia] was really exciting for us,” Morris said.

—compiled by Valerie Clemens

IF ANYONE might remember the Charlie Sheen surge of late February and early March 2011, it could in fact be literary scholars. Sheen’s rope-a-dope with addiction, including a skepticism toward Alcoholics Anonymous and belief in willpower to overthrow drugs; his range of moods; his creativity of language amidst psycho-chatter — it is not just that Sheen reflected some of the problems snuffed out in the 1996 novel “Infinite Jest,” but that by indulging in self-promotion on all fronts of media, when compared to the self-conscious author David Foster Wallace, Sheen is the anti-DFW.

It would be fairly easy to view David Foster Wallace’s fiction in the static and faded colors of the American 1990s. “Infinite Jest,” with its pre-millennial focus on years, “Clerks”-era stonerisms, obsessions and frustrations chronicled by an expansive writing style that showcased Wallace as a new kind of genius-in-orbit, was a genre-bending work whose impact was comparative to when Radiohead’s “OK Computer” broke the alternative sound barrier. Indeed, for a book so concerned with the allure and dangers of television, “Infinite Jest” first brought fiction into high definition.
“The Pale King,” published this April, is an unfinished work which presents a smattering of characters and their backgrounds and idiosyncrasies in an IRS office; the book has been cited as a development and could be placed later in Wallace’s 90s oeuvre, circa Office Space, 1999.

But this historical tailoring of analysis fails with Wallace and most artists, generally. This method of historicism could be stated as such: Recent critics, looking at Wallace’s texts, are able to contextualize him, that is place and understand him within a set of historical assumptions, thereby reducing his status as a transcendent, creative fiction writer. What actually happens is the opposite: Wallace, aware of the swarming phenomenon of his day, in selecting issues to write on, contextualized his critics: He determined what they would focus on, not vice versa.

Another claim typically is made about the role of philosophy in Wallace’s books, especially given his background in the discipline which contributed to two undergraduate theses. Published in January 2011, the study “All Things Shining” attempted to Nietzschify Wallace, a project that would have benefited if one of the authors, Prof. Sean Kelly, Chair of Philosophy at Harvard, would have acknowledged that Wallace actually left graduate philosophy at Harvard to instead pursue fiction.

If such points can be made about the mere reception of Wallace’s books, imagine what can be learned from the books themselves. A relevant topic from “The Pale King” is attention: One speaker recalls, when in college, taking medical pills — “Obetrolling” — to allow what he called “doubling,” or a heightened self-awareness (sounds like a familiar scene during finals). Some have said, for Wallace, the importance was to what someone paid attention. Which might be anything, but, by definition, would foreseeably include novels.

The terms Maximalist and Minimalist are thrown around quite a bit in literary criticism. Minimalist appears to be a term indicating a streamlined, “stripped down” aesthetic, and has, accordingly, been given sparse definition ­— it has been thrust against the Beattieful style of our Edgar Allan Poe Creative Writing professor, in this month’s Paris Review and elsewhere. Maximalism would seem the opposite: expansive in nature. Again, these terms are approximations, and I would not want to engage in the same reductionism I have just condemned. But if recent, successful novels have been largely maximalist, minimalism has thrived among short stories. One wonders whether this is somehow a logical extension of their respective formats, or something else.

You begin to see the case when a novel is juxtaposed to other mediums: when Wallace’s anxieties about television are conjoined with the analysis of music found in last year’s novels “Freedom” or “A Visit from the Goon Squad.” There is a difference between music or the image, and literature, with relation to the Internet: Online, the former can be swapped or dropped with ease, while the latter — go figure — takes attention.

So to compete in a digital age, the author faces this attentive paradox: a Maximalist-Minimalist dilemma. To maintain relevance, books need to have a deep cultural impact, a pervasiveness afforded by the type of detail and storytelling usually found in longer works. Yet such length of text precludes accessibility, longer books testing the patience of the reader in recession.

As much as any other writer, Wallace tried to bridge this gap, with a moving voice and prose that moved fast. But for all his literary inventiveness, the late writer left us with an old-fashioned tragedy. It is tempting to demand more wisdom, and more books; to extract our estate tax. But for those familiar with his works, including this spring’s “The Pale King,” David Foster Wallace already had given us too much.

Aaron Eisen is an opinion editor for The Cavalier Daily.

With today marking the final edition of The Cavalier Daily during the 2010-11 academic year, there is no better opportunity to thank the graduating fourth years who helped the paper succeed during their time at the University. These individuals’ indefatigable efforts and unyielding loyalty to this newspaper set an example that current and future staff members hope to emulate.

Ross Lawrence, who progressed from an opinion editor to become the paper’s 120th executive editor and 121st editor-in-chief, always looked classy in his Sperrys and whatever clothes he happened to rummage up from the wardrobe he kept in his car. His uncanny leadership and skill ushered the paper through several challenges, from the snowstorms of January and February 2010 to the paper’s relocation to its new office.

121st Managing Editor Irene Kan, who previously served as an assistant managing editor, showed a commitment to truth that did not cease even when the paper was out of print. Her critical perspective and attention to detail ensured that The Cavalier Daily remained a high-quality product, and those traits provided almost as much inspiration to writers and editors as did her weekly bunny emails.

Connie Huang and David Rann were the paper’s 120th and 121st chief financial officers, respectively, and their competent management of the paper’s budget enabled it to ride out one of the toughest economic climates in recent history. They both had to make difficult decisions, but the fact that the paper still is publishing on newsprint and not papyrus is a testament to their fiscal prowess.

121st Operations Manager Bennett Sorbo left his mark by solving the problems thrown at him every day through a mix of patience, hard work and occasional use of sass. If there is one perk to him no longer being on the managing board, however, it is that he now can be credited by name when the paper uses the file photos he took as a photographer.

Rodger Nayak began his career at the paper as a news writer before becoming an assistant managing editor. His role involved editing all literary content two or three times per week for about 10 hours a day. Despite this significant commitment, Rodger did not burn out and continued to write enterprising journalistic pieces even after the end of his term. He will carry on doing so upon graduation, and you can expect to see his name in The New York Times one day.

Ben Gomez served as one of the 121st sports editors. He possessed a passion for all sports, including the oft-forgotten non-revenue ones that frequently perform at the highest level among all Virginia teams. This enthusiasm translated into important coverage of sports teams that other local newspapers simply lacked.

Blair Capps served as the 120th and 121st gameday editor. She helped with important projects such as Gridiron, the paper’s comprehensive football preview that also happens to be the high point of the season most years.

As advertising manager, Ashley Zamperini played a critical role alongside the CFO in keeping the paper afloat financially. Not only was she a pleasure to be around, but she kept the advertising staff on track in terms of booking space on our pages and collecting on invoices.

Dave Taggart’s passion for arts and entertainment served him well as tableau editor. In addition to his talent for landing interviews with a variety of entertainers, he was key to the section’s expansion to include more than 40 contributors.

Lani Hossain oversaw major changes during her tenure as health & science editor, but her ability to get things done in a timely manner ensured that these changes were implemented effectively.
Former graphics editor Betty Luo co-authored So Hood it Hurts and authored Oscar Wildebeest, both of which ran at the top of the comics page every day. The two strips never ceased to push the limit by commenting on subjects most people would consider taboo.

As a news editor during the 120th term, Samantha Koon’s kindness and patience were vital to the section’s performance, as well as the recruitment and training of new writers and associate editors.
Finally, Stephanie Waties contributed heavily to the paper as one of the 120th term’s life editors.

The graduating staff includes many other individuals whose dedication and vigor have made The Cavalier Daily what it is today. These unsung heroes and those listed above have left a lasting mark on the paper, and we hope that their time here will help them to achieve their future goals.

At about 2:15 a.m. March 1, 2011, a first-year College student arrived at Martha Jefferson Hospital seizing and foaming at the mouth. He was later transported to the intensive care ward at the University Medical Center, where he was treated for an electrolyte imbalance in his blood. According to court documents, the student — a Zeta Psi pledge — had consumed an entire bottle of soy sauce at the Zeta Psi house before being brought to the hospital. He was released from the hospital four days later.

The fate of Zeta Psi members involved in the incident continues to hang in the balance, as an investigation by University Police and administration to determine whether hazing was involved is still ongoing. Since hazing is considered a serious criminal offense in the commonwealth of Virginia, along with a violation of University policy, the students, if found guilty, would be subject to criminal charges in addition to separate penalties — up to and including expulsion from the University — imposed by University judiciary processes.

Even larger questions loom over the University’s Zeta Psi chapter. If the March 1 incident is labeled hazing, what kind of sanctions will be imposed on the fraternity? Will they mimic the kind of undisclosed punishments administered by the national headquarters of Kappa Sigma on its University chapter last spring? Or will they bring about the demise of the fraternity all together? What kind of implications might this have for the University’s Greek system as a whole? Past incidents serve as possible answers to these questions.

A firm slap on the wrist
Last spring Kappa Sigma’s University chapter was sanctioned by its national body for violating the organization’s code of conduct. Kappa Sigma Executive Director Mitchell Wilson attributed the sanctions to “some inappropriate activities with pledges,” and declined to elaborate.

The chapter was then placed on Trustee Status, meaning an alumnus was assigned to work with the chapter during the past year to get it back on the right track. According to Wilson, the fraternity’s value structure was revisited to ensure the chapter’s programs were conducted within the standards of the organization. Despite the supervision, the chapter has continued to conduct its own recruitment efforts.

“It has been a tremendous success,” Wilson said. “We are very pleased with everything the chapter has accomplished and with the position they find themselves in today.”

Although the chapter continues to operate under Trustee Status, Wilson said it is making substantial progress in meeting requirements and should return to normal operation soon.

“These young men have responded over the course of the past year and I think that they will continue to respond,” Wilson said. “This is our founding chapter, and we want our founding chapter to be one of our very strongest, and I think we have a quality group of young men at the University.”

Other fraternities which have faced similar issues in the past few years have not been so lucky.

A brotherhood finds new life
The Mu Chapter of Alpha Epsilon Pi had a steadfast presence at the University since 1924 until the summer of 2009. In mid-May of that year, the fraternity’s national chapter suspended the Mu brothers for 30 days pending an investigation into alleged hazing. Adam Smith, the chapter president at the time, said he was mystified by the decision, claiming Nationals failed to clarify what facts lay behind the investigation.

At the end of the 30-day suspension, Nationals told the Mu Chapter it was being reorganized, citing low occupancy in the house and general concerns about chapter operation in addition to the hazing allegations as reasons for reorganization. Smith said Nationals’ accusation of “declining rush numbers” was unfounded, as the chapter recruited an above-average 14 new members the previous fall.

Speculation surfaced that the decision was influenced by the chapter’s declining Jewish membership. The chapter’s increasingly non-Jewish brotherhood, exemplified by Smith being its second consecutive non-Jewish president, may not have sat well with officials of Alpha Epsilon Pi, self-described as an international Jewish fraternity.

Alpha Epsilon Pi Executive Director Andrew Borans denied such discriminatory accusations, saying the decision to close the chapter ultimately rode on the hazing allegations.

“What’s the debate if you’re breaking the rules?” Borans said. “If there’s a question about breaking the rules, that’s a different story. If it’s determined that you’re hazing, where is the negotiation? How would you with a straight face even have a negotiation?”

The decision was particularly frustrating for the chapter’s pledge class, as it came at the culmination of a semester’s worth of pledging.

“I speak for my pledge class when I say we were all pretty angry,” third-year College student Jon Crespy said. “It happened so soon after being initiated. We never really had much of an opportunity to be brothers after spending all that time as pledges.”

In line with standard procedures associated with reorganization, a Nationals representative interviewed 25 of the chapter’s members to determine which former brothers would be reinstated. Thirteen brothers were offered invitations to return, but none of them accepted.

Former Mu Chapter brothers were approached the following spring by University alumni of Alpha Delta Phi, a fraternity shut down in 2003 as a result of dwindling membership numbers. Twelve former brothers of the Mu Chapter pledge class joined Alpha Delta Phi in the fall of 2010 to bring the fraternity’s total to 25 members, Crespy said. Alpha Delta Phi President Frank Chin, a former member of the 14-man Alpha Epsilon Pi pledge class, said he hopes the chapter will be officially recognized in the spring of 2012, although that decision rests with the University and the Inter-Fraternity Council.

Borans said Alpha Epsilon Pi will be completely renovating its house and returning to the University this coming fall. IFC President Neil Holby, however, said Alpha Epsilon Pi nationals have not contacted the IFC during the past six months and do not have an active file to seek recognition.

A different route to brotherhood
Alpha Epsilon Pi was not the only fraternity to face suspension in the fall of 2009. Sept. 21, national headquarters for the Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity, in conjunction with University officials, revoked the University’s Virginia-Eta chapter’s charter. Nationals gave brothers living in the Sigma Phi Epsilon house 30 days to find off-Grounds housing and clarified that the fraternity would not be allowed to reorganize on Grounds for at least three years.

Sigma Phi Epsilon Executive Director Brian Warren pointed to a string of incidents Nationals felt were detrimental to the fraternity’s reputation as the reason for the decision, noting that no particular occurrence caused the shutdown. In a recent statement to The Cavalier Daily, Warren said the charter was revoked for “life safety concerns,” noting that reports from parents and members left Nationals and the University no choice but to withdraw the charter.

One particular incident stirred up trouble occurred during a rush event the previous semester. Known as “Car Bash,” Sigma Phi Epsilon recruits smashed a junkyard car to pieces in the back lot of the Sigma Phi Epsilon house. One brother then lit the car on fire, which prompted a neighbor to call the police. The IFC put the chapter on social probation for the rest of the semester.

Warren, a Sigma Phi Epsilon member who graduated from the University in 2004, said he did his best to prevent his former chapter from closing in the months leading up to the decision. He cited a letter he wrote to the IFC in February of 2009 which stated Nationals thought highly of then-Virginia-Eta President Alex Ehrnschwender and that they would continue to provide the chapter with everything they needed to be successful. Warren also noted that he did not get to vote on the decision, since charter authority ultimately rests with the fraternity’s National Board of Directors. He did, however, have to deliver the bad news to the chapter. “It was the most difficult thing I have ever done,” he said.

Controversies at the University do not threaten the existence of Greek life as a whole. Photo by Thomas Bynum

Spring semester pledges of 2009 were told by Sigma Phi Epsilon brothers to never wear “SigEp” Greek-lettered apparel, as it would associate them with a national organization which did not represent their true character. Virginia-Eta members particularly resented Nationals’ new “Balanced Man Program,” which Warren said was meant to challenge stereotypes regarding fraternities by making them a more integral part of the education process.

“This new ‘Balanced Man Program’ would be more of a recreational learning center than a fraternity,” Ehrnschwender said in the wake of the chapter’s disbandment. “We strongly value traditions at SPE and value the traditional SPE chapter.”

Although the chapter is still not recognized by the IFC, many former Sigma Phi Epsilon members continue to live together and operate as a de-facto fraternity. With the help of their Alumni Board, Sigma Phi Epsilon brothers held an open house during IFC Rush, during which they gauged the interest of numerous first years despite admitting their un-official status, ultimately attracting seven recruits, an anonymous brother said. They hope to obtain an independent IFC charter in the fall of 2012 and, with the help of alumni, move back into their house on 150 Madison Lane. Warren said he hopes to bring back the Virgina-Eta chapter “very soon.”

Is the Greek system worth it?
With repeated hazing incidents cropping up at universities across the country, some say the Greek system is on the decline. These people also point to the fact that a growing amount of diverse organizations on college campuses has made joining a fraternity less of a social need, and that rising tuition costs make some hesitant to spend more money to join social clubs.

Despite this negative perception, it appears Greek life at the University may be on the rise. Michael Citro, assistant dean of students and director of fraternity and sorority life at the University, said the average fraternity chapter size has increased from 54.3 members per chapter to 55.82 members per chapter from the spring 2008 semester to the spring 2011 semester. Moreover, the average new member class size has increased from 14.63 new members per chapter in 2008 to 16.93 new members per chapter in the spring semester 2011. Additionally, the number of men accepting membership bids in IFC fraternities has increased from 439 in 2008 to 474 in 2011. The sorority community has also experienced considerable growth, including the recent re-colonization of Sigma Delta Tau.

“Fraternities and sororities provide an incredible outlet for undergraduate students to gain experience in leadership positions, to serve their community, to contribute to philanthropic causes and to embrace the ideals of brotherhood or sisterhood,” Citro said in an email. “While there have been isolated risk management concerns, the fraternity and sorority community remains strong, healthy and positioned to provide a values-based experience for undergraduate students.”

Possibly the biggest threat to Greek life at the University is continued incidents of hazing, which has proven capable of taking down fraternities and sororities, and in some cases entire Greek systems, said retired Pennsylvania Judge Mitch Crane, an anti-hazing advocate. Crane, a former keynote speaker who has spoken at more than 400 college campuses about hazing and other risk management issues, said increasing abuse of alcohol by minors during the last 30 years, along with other factors, has made hazing a more visible part of Greek life.

“We have more serious incidents these days than ever before in which people are seriously injured and unfortunately even killed sometimes,” Crane said. “One of the reasons that it’s so pervasive is that people are joining organizations where proving trust is something they’re required to do, and they therefore have to prove their trust by doing whatever they’re taught to do and don’t believe anything bad is going to happen to them.”

Still, many University students believe the benefits of hazing outweigh the rare instances of trouble.

“What opponents of hazing don’t realize is that its main goal is to bring pledge classes together and make them respect and earn the house that they’re dedicating a semester — and, in turn, a few years — to,” an anonymous University fraternity member said. “More often than not, it’s a worthwhile way for prospective members to get to know each other, get to know the brothers, and get to know a little more about themselves.”

Most University fraternities take numerous precautions to avoid trouble with hazing. Each University chapter, for example, is required to complete a Fraternal Organization Agreement (FOA), which requires educational sessions about hazing, alcohol abuse, sexual assault and other potential issues a Greek organization might face. In addition, many national organizations provide their chapters with a set of rules they are required to follow to remain in good standing.

“There’s actually a lot of rules that fraternities live under that I think most people aren’t aware of,” another fraternity member said. “There really is an accountability that people try to hold to.”
The negative perception on Greek life may also be perpetuated by media scrutiny, which often provides more coverage of fraternities’ and sororities’ problems than their successes. IFC President Neil Holby noted that 23,173 community service hours were reported by 44 University fraternity and sorority chapters for the fall 2010 semester, and that $78,073.33 were raised by 39 chapters for philanthropic and charitable causes that semester. He also pointed out that the overall average GPA of University fraternity members stands at 3.237, compared to 3.167 for the rest the school’s male population.

Many other schools have cracked down on Greek life in the aftermath of serious incidents with pledges. University officials at Penn State, another state school with a thriving Greek scene, imposed numerous new regulations on their entire Greek system after a freshman pledge was found dead of alcohol poisoning outside a fraternity house. Other schools, such as Amherst College, Williams College and Bowdoin College, responded to incidents by banning their systems altogether.

Despite detrimental incidents of hazing, however, the state of Greek life at the University appears to be stable, if not on the rise.

COLLEGE years pass us by quickly. No one knows this better than the graduating Class of 2011.

Therefore, as we enjoy our remaining days here, we should take time to reflect on the qualities that make the University truly distinct.

One is the University’s designation as a UNESCO World Heritage site. Our University, along with Jefferson’s Monticello, shares a place among the world’s most remarkable and valuable treasures, including the Great Wall of China, the Taj Mahal, the Pyramids of Egypt, the Great Barrier Reef and the Grand Canyon.

In the United States, there are 21 UNESCO World Heritage Sites, 17 of which are national parks. The University is the only college in the nation that enjoys the rare honor of World Heritage status. It became a World Heritage site in 1987 thanks to the efforts of the National Park Service.

As University students, we are privileged to live within the shadow of history. Every day for four years, we are able to walk beneath the marble columns of one of our nation’s most important cultural landmarks. Its architectural and educational designs embody the ideals of the American republic and emphasize a spirit of democracy, only achievable by one of the world’s principal constitutional experimenters.

Jefferson’s Academical Village was a revolutionary educational plan — its 10 pavilions “serve as an encyclopaedia of classical and neoclassical architectural designs” and its Rotunda stands as a “half-scale copy of the Pantheon in Rome.” United beneath the colonnades, we all learn within one of our nation’s most beautiful and enthralling landmarks.

As residents of Charlottesville and University students, we are subjects to an extraordinary heritage. We owe our thanks to those who preserve and maintain this national legacy. Before we leave the University, we should take advantage of the history around us and the cultural heritage to which we are heirs. We should learn what our status as a “World Heritage site” means, and why it is important.

The United States always has stood at the front of the conservation and preservation movements. Yellowstone became the world’s first national park in 1872, sparking a national park idea that would forever change the world. The idea of a nationally administered public land was a new concept; it had significant implications for the modern conservation movement. A national park was at its core democratic — all individuals of a nation would share in the collective treasures of their environment.

Not surprisingly, a movement also emerged to establish the national park idea at an international level. In 1965, the idea of a “World Heritage Trust” was put forward during a White House Conference. The purpose of this trust would be to look after and preserve “the world’s superb natural and scenic areas and historic sites for the present and the future of the entire world citizenry.”

In 1972, the World Heritage Convention — also known as the Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage — was adopted by UNESCO. UNESCO is the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. In accordance with the World Heritage Convention, preservation and conservation became not only national, but international interests. The Convention maintained a two part goal: the conservation of nature and the preservation of culture.

Of the 911 World Heritage sites, 704 are designated as cultural, 180 as natural and 27 as mixed properties. All potential new World Heritage sites are recommended by member nations of the World Heritage Convention. Each member state may voluntarily nominate its own national sites to be selected based on a strict set of criteria.

In Charlottesville, we are lucky to live close to two other historic sites, which currently sit on the Tentative List to be considered for UNESCO World Heritage site status — Jefferson’s Poplar Forest and the Virginia State Capitol Building in Richmond. Along with our own university and Jefferson’s Monticello, these sites encompass our most precious cultural heritage.

To be accepted onto the World Heritage List, a site must be of “outstanding universal value” and “meet at least one out of ten selection criteria.” All nominations of new American sites are overseen by the Secretary of the Interior. To be considered, a site already must be designated a federal property, a national historic landmark or a national natural landmark. Nominations then are assessed by a smaller, elected body of 21 member nations, known as the World Heritage Committee. The committee selects new World Heritage Sites and through the World Heritage Fund provides assistance, guidance and training to member nations.

Once a new site is designated, direct authority remains in the hands of the member nation to continue to protect and preserve the property. Most sites are maintained either by the national, state or local government, or by a tribal or private authority. In the United States, the majority of our World Heritage Sites are managed and maintained by the National Park Service.

Today, the University maintains a deep connection with the National Park Service and the UNESCO World Heritage Convention. We should understand this connection — it can teach us a lot about the importance of conservation and preservation in the modern age. We are truly lucky to attend the University, and we must remember that we gain our education not only in the classroom, but also in our presence among the colonnades.

Ashley Chappo’s column usually appeared Wednesdays in The Cavalier Daily. She can be reached at a.chappo@cavalierdaily.com.