Vice President for Student Affairs announces measures to 'move beyond' offensive fraternity email
In an email sent to the campus community Wednesday night, Linda Clement announces creation of advisory group, indicates student involved will not return to campus this semester
Jeremy Kim/For The Diamondback
VP for Student Affairs Linda Clement
Posted: Wednesday, March 25, 2015 10:00 pm |
Updated: 1:22 am, Thu Mar 26, 2015.
Vice President for Student Affairs announces measures to 'move beyond' offensive fraternity email
The former Kappa Sigma member who sent the now-viral offensive email in January 2014 will not be returning to the campus this semester “by mutual consent between the student involved, his family and the University,” according to an email Vice President for Student Affairs Linda Clement sent last night.
Clement, along with university President Wallace Loh, Chief Diversity Officer Kumea Shorter-Gooden and Assistant President and Chief of Staff Michele Eastman, met with student group leaders earlier in the day to discuss how to heal from the incident. The student’s email, which surfaced online two weeks ago, used racist and sexist language, including the phrase “f--- consent.”
“The focus of our discussion was how to move beyond the email, how our community, working together, can cultivate and maintain a healthy culture of respect, diversity, and equity,” Clement wrote.
Clement’s email includes a list of measures already in the works, including the creation of a multicultural student advisory group that would counsel Loh on diversity issues.
“Obviously the administration knows diversity and multiculturalism are issues on campus, but it’s hard for them to see what students really want,” said Student Government Association President Patrick Ronk, who attended yesterday’s meeting. “It’s great to have a direct line to President Loh to talk about the issues we’re facing on the student level.”
The Department of Fraternity & Sorority Life will begin mandatory training programs on sexual assault prevention, multicultural competency, hazing prevention and drug and alcohol education for its members beginning next year, the email states.
The DFSL has also applied for a grant to hire a graduate student to educate fraternities and sororities on diversity throughout the year, and is working to implement a social justice project for its chapters on “quality multicultural competence programs.”
“While we are a diverse campus, we’re kind of self-segregated a little bit,” Ronk said. “We’re hoping to open up avenues where [Interfraternity Council] and [Maryland Panhellenic Association] and [National Pan-Hellenic Council], [Multicultural Greek Council] can have events together and we can have actual multicultural events.”
This university’s chapter of Kappa Sigma has pledged $500 to the Office of Diversity & Inclusion to work on diversity programming within Greek life. Together with Kappa Sigma, the office will also work to determine mandatory diversity training.
Junior Kevin Fryc, the president of this university’s chapter of Kappa Sigma, said he hopes other chapters follow suit and each pledge between $500 and $1,000 to fund an annual retreat focused on diversity for 50 Greek life members.
“The issue of diversity in fraternities all over the nation has been ignored for a long time,” the accounting and finance major said. “If Greek life is going to continue, it can’t keep going in the direction it’s going and the first step is inclusion and acceptance of all races, sexes, religions and creeds.”
The SGA and office of Multicultural Involvement & Community Advocacy plan to co-host an open forum at 3 p.m. in Stamp Student Union's Colony Ballroom next Thursday. Loh, Clement and Shorter-Gooden will attend along with Matt Supple, the DFSL director, and Catherine Carroll, this university’s Title IX coordinator.
“We certainly won’t stop there,” said Paul Becker, this university’s IFC president. “We’re certainly looking for more concrete solutions for the general student body. We’re looking to make those steps forward in kind of tangible ways.”
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