Vice President for Student Life Eddie Knowles and Secretary of the Institute and General Counsel Charles Carletta both attended the Student Senate’s meeting on April 26. The discussion centered around an extended perspective on students’ rights that focused on the new greek directions being proposed by the Dean of Students Office
Knowles began with a sincere apology in how the new directions were “rolled out.” He went on to say that DOSO didn’t intend to offend or disrespect the student body; the administration didn’t mean to give the impression that it was not interested in student input. Even so, Knowles asked those listening to understand the context behind the directions, pointing out that the Institute is in a crisis concerning greek life.
Two years ago, both Knowles and Carletta went to the Alumni Inter-Greek Council because six houses were on suspension, mostly due to alcohol violations. This, to both administrators, was a crisis, and they asked the AIGC for help. They sent a letter out to greek alumni and received an “underwhelming response,” according to Knowles. DOSO felt they had talked enough because both the AIGC and the IFC were giving off the impression that they didn’t know what to do. DOSO took these signs as the need for an intervention.
Since the efforts with the AIGC two years ago, there has been a “downward pattern of spiraling in greek life,” according to Knowles—five houses are on suspension and two are being shut down. In addition to that, three fraternity presidents have been arrested by the Troy Police Department over the last two years due to loud parties and underage drinking. Furthermore, greek enrollment has decreased. Knowles asked, “How long do we have to watch things go south in the dynamics of the greek community?”
Knowles went on to mention the close calls he had this past year. He pleaded with the senators and those who were in the gallery—among them IFC President Santosh Vaghela ’07 and Panhel President Jan Harrington ’07—saying that these were the facts. He emphasized that he has seen too much loss and does not want to go to any more funerals. He went on to say, “I don’t want any student in a situation of injury, loss, or hurt due to alcohol.”
According to Knowles, the administration is sitting on a powder keg. Dean of Students Mark Smith told Knowles that things have not improved, and Knowles said that the deans are coming to him with serious concerns. Knowles went on to say that perhaps this stance was not seen at the greek life meeting held by Smith and Greek Dean Jessica Wickiewicz when they revealed the new greek directions to students. He said that he feels a sense of urgency about the direction greek life is going.
Regarding the new directions, Knowles said, “This is not about discipline; it’s about a proactive approach.” With that, Rick Barnes, a consultant, will hold focus groups with students to get feedback on initiatives and other issues that need to be discussed. From this feedback, the IFC president, the Panhel president, the Grand Marshal, representatives from the AIGC and the Rensselaer Alumni Association, chapter advisors, Carletta, Interim Vice President of Strategic Communications and External Relations Steve Naru, and Wickiewicz will serve as part of a study group led by Director of the Union Rick Hartt ’70. The goals are reviewing the initiatives, taking the feedback into account, and coming to Knowles and Smith with new ideas and implementation.
This study group will first convene after commencement and work through the summer. Knowles, as an independent, said he has seen the value of greek life from a distance since he was in college. He stated that the greek system needs to be preserved, but that the paradigm of the campus has changed. Knowles said that he is determined to get people around the table, and Carletta added that he can’t imagine RPI without its greeks and said, “We can’t let this system go.”
Knowles repeatedly apologized for the poor process in which the directions were presented. He wants to capitalize on the attention now being paid to the issue, and seeks to have discussions to improve greek life to make it a model of national excellence. He does not want to use judicial action to create that model. Carletta, however, expressed concerns about how recently, the Greek Judicial Board has been giving harsher punishment to the more troublesome houses, giving additional years of suspension; one house has received a total of 10 years of suspension.
“Time is not on our side,” Knowles said, and he expressed his concern of going into the fall without the new direction on alcohol. Gallery member and Phi Gamma Delta brother Bob Fishel ’07, asked if the policies on alcohol were negotiable, and Knowles said that the study group is to look at the initiatives, gather student input, and return with recommendations.
When the time constraints of the study group—which would only meet over the summer—were questioned, Knowles said, “I’m putting people’s feet to the fire.” He feels that he is putting individuals with invested interest into the study group, which he feels will provide results. In addition to that, Knowles said that the student body should trust their elected leaders to represent them well this summer at this study group and feels the website, http://www.saverpigreeks.com/ is a wonderful tool for communication over the summer.
According to Knowles, Rensselaer students can achieve great things in a limited amount of time. “When you want to galvanize, you can do it quickly.” He expects students to roll up their sleeves and work with the July 1 deadline. Knowles is confident despite the time constraints and believes that “we can do this.”
Vaghela expressed his concern that DOSO hadn’t come to the students first. Knowles apologized and responded by saying, “The question is, are you willing to work with us?” Vagehla replied that he was.
This “sincere” effort to get everyone involved, according to Knowles, showed that both the students and administration are on the same path to saving greeks, but not necessarily the same page. Knowles said he wants the greek system to do more than just survive—he wants the system to thrive and achieve a level of excellence. He ended by saying, “Work with us.”
