Several students recently were disciplined and expelled from Norwich University in Norwich, Vt., due to their membership in a secret society.
This precedent runs contrary to traditions at the University where secret societies such as the Seven Society, the Imps and the Z's are both encouraged and esteemed.
Norwich University strictly forbids secret societies as well as fraternities and sororities, fearing that the presence of these groups may undermine the authority of the university's military training programs.
Norwich University's student body is half-military and half-civilian. The prevailing Corps of Cadets fosters a fraternal atmosphere of which the university approves.
Norwich University officials discovered the so-called "Left Out Society" over the December break. While officials were conducting routine inspections in dorms, they found property that had been stolen from Norwich University.
"The LOS were not a very respectable group of students," said Amanda Tracy, a senior at Norwich University, in an interview with Dartmouth University's student newspaper, The Dartmouth. "Their activities were beating each other ... they went binge drinking with little consideration for student tolerance."
Tracy said she thought most students at her school "deplore that kind of behavior."
At this point, three students have been dismissed and three have withdrawn from Norwich University in conjunction with the Society. Officials disciplined 11 other students on campus.
However, none of the society's members were willing to comment about the matter.
Norwich University President Richard Schneider banned secret groups from the campus altogether in 1999. This decision followed the prohibition of another secret group on Norwich University's campus, Skull and Swords, in 1997.
- Compiled by Alexis Unkovic
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