Just under a month after a gunman and an accomplice robbed a joint fraternity party at the Sigma Pi house, the Inter-Fraternity Council passed four resolutions to ensure the safety of University students at its weekly Presidents' Council meeting Thursday.
The IFC made changes in four areas, including security in rental contracts, fraternity use of University ID cards and guest lists, the "Set Fine/Reward" system and the stamp system.
"We made these decisions with the best interests of the entire system in mind," IFC President Ryan Ewalt said.
The IFC voted in October 2001 to limit rentals to other Greek organizations only.
The first resolution concerns rental of fraternity houses by other Greek organizations. The rental contract must stipulate that at least one police officer be present at the door of the party for the entire duration of the party.
Other Greek councils, such as the Inter-Sorority Council, the Black Fraternal Council and the Multicultural Greek Council, already require some form of security at parties, Ewalt said.
"The actual changes are nothing new -- they are just solidifying something that was already in place," BFC President Michael Dunkley said. "Those measures already existed, just not on an official level."
Outgoing MGC President Emmanuel Smadja concurred.
"Most of our parties have security," Smadja said. "It doesn't make a big difference, but we can feel more comfortable."
The second resolution requires that a student without a University ID must be on the guest list or a fraternity brother must vouch for him or her to enter the party.
The third resolution stipulates that the IFC will distribute five to ten unique stamps to the various fraternities to mark the hands of those 21 and older.
"This way, each fraternity decides which stamp to use each night and the chances of two different fraternities using the same stamp on a given night are slim," Ewalt said.
Each fraternity's unique stamp will prevent partygoers from attempting to get into another fraternity party on the basis of a stamped hand, he added.
The final resolution eliminates the use of social probation as a punishment for fraternities. Instead, IFC will fine the fraternity $100 for its first offense and will increase each subsequent fine in increments of $100.
At the end of each semester, IFC will distribute the funds generated from fines equally among the fraternities without offenses as an incentive for fraternities to abide by IFC rules, Ewalt said.
The IFC drew up the resolutions at a Safety and Security Ad Hoc Committee Meeting on April 2 and on the following night, introduced the measures to the IFC executive board, which consists of the presidents of the 32 IFC chapters.
"All the changes were made with the safety of students in mind," said Phi Kappa Psi President Mike Webber, a member of the Committee. "That was our ultimate goal and we took a lot of good steps to achieve it."
Ewalt said he discussed the resolutions with the presidents of the other three Greek councils and with various chapter presidents during the period preceding the vote.
"The fact that IFC took these measures shows they're aware of student safety," Dunkley said. "Hopefully that message resonates [throughout] Greek life."
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