RECENTLY, Phi Delta Alpha (formerly Phi Delta Theta) Fraternity lost its charter at the University of Virginia. However, not wanting to officially leave Greek life, the former "Phi Delt" (now known as the "Phi Society") has begun to seek recognition from the IFC as a local fraternity (i.e., a fraternity with no national affiliation). An amendment to allow local fraternities into the IFC was introduced to the presidents of all IFC fraternities last Thursday, but has not yet been passed. It is crucial that this amendment be struck down.
Local fraternities, while they might seem harmless at first glance, hold the potential to cause havoc within the IFC and even eventually bring down the Greek system at the University in its entirety.
To begin unpacking this issue, let's look to the Phi Society itself. We first must ask the question of why the Phi Society is no longer affiliated with its national chapter. Did it just spontaneously decide to break off and attempt to form a local fraternity? This seems unlikely due to the struggle it is being forced to go through in order to gain IFC admission. The fact is that Phi Delta Theta nationals no longer recognize Phi Delta Alpha at the University because the chapter refused to follow newly adopted national rules and was kicked out of the organization. Let's keep this in mind as we move forward.
One function of national fraternity organizations is to regulate and restrain their small representations at individual universities. They enforce a strict and extensive set of guidelines in order to ensure the safety of both their brothers and of those who frequent their houses. If a chapter breaks the rules and engages in dangerous conduct, it loses its charter, as was the case with the Phi Society. The problem with local fraternities is that, for them, there is no national organization to which they need to be responsible. This leaves only the IFC. The IFC does not currently enforce national regulations -- this would be nearly impossible when one considers the scope of Greek life at the University -- but in the case of local fraternities, they would have no choice but to assume this responsibility. This would leave the University with fraternities with a history of bad behavior; reestablished, but with no extensive power network to which they are accountable. It is not hard to see what follows from here.
If local fraternities are admitted to the IFC, it is not unreasonable to speculate that this will encourage other nationally recognized fraternities to drop their charters and become local. It would not be a completely illogical move in that it would save a lot of money by avoiding national dues, and would free them from nationally enforced policies.
A movement in this direction has the potential to negatively impact University Greek life in two ways. First of all, it could quickly lead to tension in the IFC between colonized and local versions of identical fraternities. If the IFC becomes divided against itself, there is no way that it will be able to function efficiently, and this will harm the entire Greek system. Secondly, if local fraternities are allowed IFC admittance and recognition, it is likely that we will see an increase in the total number of fraternities at the University. This will hurt recruitment for fraternities already in existence, in that rushees will be spread thinner across a larger number of houses. Lowered recruitment, in turn, will hurt established fraternities financially due to the fact that there will be fewer individuals to pay dues and brothers to fill houses.
Finally, we must look at an even bigger picture: the long-term implications of allowing local fraternities IFC recognition. Say there was to be an accident at one of these new local fraternities. Although it is true that to gain admission to the IFC the local fraternities would be forced to sign extensive liability waivers, an incident of this sort could have major repercussions on Greek life at the University. Say someone were to, oh, jump out a window of a local fraternity. Say that this person was killed. Who is going to take the blame for such a catastrophe? There is no national organization to turn to.
The only body responsible for and in charge of the local fraternity would be the IFC, and it is here that blame will inevitably fall. Yes, formal liability has been waived, but this doesn't mean that the University, compelled to act in the wake of such a tragedy, will not pull the plug on the IFC. Furthermore, it doesn't take a lot of thought to understand that if the IFC goes, Greek life at the University will quickly crumble and disappear. Although this is an extreme case, it would be far from impossible should local fraternities be allowed admittance to the IFC. To pass an amendment allowing for their admission would be to put the larger interests of the legitimate Greek community at risk in order to cater to the wishes of delinquent organizations. A passage of this amendment would be illogical, shortsighted and unfair, and it cannot be supported.
(Laura Parcells is a Cavalier Daily associate editor. She can be reached at lparcells@cavalierdaily.com.)
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