Chancellor's Commission on Fraternities and Sororities

Structure Overview

Structure Overview Chart

Powerpoint Organizational Chart

1999 Recommendations on Policies and Practices

Historical Overview

Ten years ago, Chancellor Donna Shalala formed the Commission on the Future of Fraternities and Sororities to search for effective ways for this university to work in accord with Greek chapters and their umbrella organizations to improve their operations and the deportment of their members. The creation of the Commission was a response to growing concerns about problems in Greek life that affected students, the university and the Madison community. After months of public hearings and separate meetings with students, alumni, faculty, staff and community representatives, the Commission set forth thirteen recommendations for forging a strong cooperative relationship between the university and the Greek community. In the preamble to its April 17, 1989 report, the Commission aptly stated the philosophy for this new relationship:

A. The University has an interest in the general safety and quality of life of students in fraternities and sororities.

B. The University has an interest in high standards of social conduct by students in fraternities and sororities.

C. The most effective way to secure these interests is for the University to assist and support the building of effective fraternity and sorority self-governance.

In May, 1989, upon the adoption of the Commissions’ recommendations Chancellor Shalala charged the Commission to shift from an investigative and rule-making body to one that oversees the relationship between the University and the Greek community. The Commission has done that for the past ten years.

In November, 1997 Dean Mary Rouse asked the Commission to review and update its original recommendations. To prepare for this evaluation, we carried out town hall hearings, focus group meetings and Commission meetings. A large amount of information was gleaned from the presentations and comments at these events by students, Greek alumni, university faculty and staff. The information strongly informs the new recommendations in this report. The results of these meetings are summarized in the document “Commission on Fraternities and Sororities, Summary Report of Assessments and Recommendations from Town Hall Meetings and Focus Groups Held in 1998 and 1999.”

A New Era and Role for the Commission

University assistance and support of self-governance were the foundation of the 1989 Commission recommendations, and they remain the foundation today. We reaffirm that a strong and vital community of fraternities and sororities which emphasizes the traditional Greek values of scholarship, service and fellowship can only be achieved if fraternity and sorority students are able to effectively and responsibly govern themselves in their chapters and through their umbrella organizations. The proper role for the university is to be actively engaged in providing to the Greek community the necessary guidance, services and resources to allow leaders and members to achieve democratic self-governance and self control and to be productive, accountable members of the university community.

The preamble to the 1989 Commission Report and all of the original recommendations of the Commission remain relevant today and are endorsed in this report with the necessary modifications and expansions to bring them up-to-date. The original recommendations and changes are summarized in the next section, and some are addressed in greater detail in the remaining sections of this report as part of the new recommendations.

The many meetings held in 1998 and the collective experiences of the Commission since then lead us to conclude that while the 1989 recommendations need some revising, they are fundamentally sound, and that the difficulty has been in bringing about their implementation. This fact leads us to the following general recommendation that informs the remainder of this report:

Now and into the future, the Commission on Fraternities and Sororities must move beyond simply providing oversight of the Greek system if we are to progress in reaching the goals of fraternity and sorority members and of the university for improving social conduct and the quality of life in chapter houses and for improving the ability of the chapter houses and the umbrella organizations to effectively and responsibly govern themselves. Conditions today require that the university, through the Commission, assume a more active, collaborative role with fraternity and sorority chapters and their umbrella organizations in proposing, advocating, and implementing creative programs to improve Greek life on this campus.

This recommendation for a more active Commission is consistent with developments on many campuses, large and small. New and refurbished programs are being announced as fraternities and sororities across the nation are receiving greater attention. They are under close scrutiny and are being pressed by their national organizations and by university administrations to radically change many of their practices and especially those in regard to alcohol use. Alcohol abuse and its consequences are major problems in Greek life in America and especially on this campus. We are keenly aware that alcohol abuse is widespread for many University of Wisconsin-Madison students, but our focus must be on ending the abuse and reforming the social fabric in fraternities and sororities. However, it would be shortsighted to dwell solely on the alcohol problem. Other aspects of Greek life that interfere with its traditional goals and the creation of a vibrant learning experience outside the classroom also must be addressed.

The Commission must proceed, in partnership with Greek student leadership, to bring about changes that will restore vitality and longevity to fraternities and sororities at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. A Commission more engaged in problem solving must be well informed about the best practices for achieving changes that are presently being proposed and tested by national Greek organizations and by Greek student services specialists on other campuses. Changes will not come easily nor will they come quickly. New programs and reforms in present practices will require more resources. The Commission must actively seek funding from within the university and from outside sources, especially among Greek alumni, to assist the change process.

To be more active, the Commission must establish standing committees on critical issues for Greek life. The committees must study the issues, actively develop programs and report to the Commission on findings and recommendations. A successful start on a committee structure began in the process of generating the recommendations for this report. These committees are composed of Commission members, Greek chapter members, alumni, academic staff and faculty, and in the ensuing months they must be expanded to carry out the program set forth in this report.