President Delaney and other UNF representatives met Tuesday with fraternity/sorority council members to discuss the state of Greek life at UNF and their proposed “suspension of all social events.”

It’s since been clarified that this means the suspension of alcohol at Greek events for two months, not the suspension of all Greek activities. According to a message Delaney sent out about the meeting, this suspension of alcohol wasn’t based on an isolated event, but on “inappropriate behavior” at some Greek events.

Delaney sent out a message regarding the meeting expressing how pleased he is with how the situation was handled.

“I was very impressed with the students’ passion for returning the focus of their organizations to the values they hold dear,” wrote Delaney. “Frankly, many of my presidential colleagues haven’t had such a similar experience, and I am grateful for the passion.”

Students had plenty to say about the proposal, with some Greek members disappointed about the idea.

“Greek life at UNF is very mild compared to larger schools like FSU, and as us men in ATO believe that our fraternity focuses most on being a brotherhood that connects us with opportunities and connections that last a lifetime,” said Cameron Parlette, sophomore and member of the Alpha Tau Omega fraternity.

This week, the councils will meet with various members of the Greek chapters to decide what to do about alcohol at social events. They don’t have the authority to ban alcohol, so once they reach a decision they’ll make a recommendation to Delaney.

Here is the full statement from Delaney:

Late this afternoon, I met with the students who head up the University of North Florida Council of Presidents, which represent the Interfraternity Council, the National Pan-Hellenic Council, the Multicultural Greek Council and the Panhellenic Council. I asked to meet with these students to better understand their proposed and tabled moratorium on alcohol at Greek social events.

This was incorrectly communicated as a “suspension of Greek activities,” which wasn’t the intent of the leaders of the Council and also not within its authority. Greek activity has NOT been suspended on campus.

While no single event triggered their suggestion, there is clearly a genuine concern about some inappropriate behavior at some Greek events, both at UNF and across the country.

I was very impressed with the students’ passion for returning the focus of their organizations to the values they hold dear. Frankly, many of my presidential colleagues haven’t had such a similar experience, and I am grateful for the passion.

This week, the Councils will be meeting with the presidents, delegates and advisors of each chapter to discuss ways to ensure that UNF fraternities and sororities have responsible mechanisms in place to ensure they don’t experience the same tragedies we’ve seen on other campuses.  Following those meetings, the Council of Presidents will make a recommendation to me.

I want to make it clear that this proactive approach, if implemented, doesn’t impact the majority of Greek life activities, such as rush events, member gatherings, chapter meetings or the organizations’ numerous philanthropic activities. The proposal is, in essence, a voluntary, self-imposed two month “pause button” requiring no alcohol at chapter activities that would allow each chapter to refocus its efforts on helping produce outstanding men and women who are leaders in their communities.

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