Changes sought by Greeks

Some members of the Greek community are pushing for a change in how they interact with the University and the hand that the University plays in their governance.

In recent weeks, ideas have been proposed within the Intra-Fraternity Council to institute a Greek version of a “bill of rights.” There are reports, while unconfirmed, that these changes are causing controversies within the organization.

Claims have surfaced that Greek organizations wish to shed the heightened standards that their members are held to and function more as student organizations, independent from University controls.

Though Executive Board members declined to comment on any specific proposal within their organization, IFC President Rich Heglund offered the following statements.

“The Greek community has expressed a desire for changes in our current state of operations in how we interact amongst ourselves and our interactions with the greater Michigan Tech community,” said Heglund. “The Greek community is in the process of determining what manner of beneficial changes we would like and how we can achieve them. It is the interest of the Greek community to come to a consensus on what changes we desire and how we can implement them ourselves and with the assistance of the University.”

Panhellenic President, Katherine Elicerio, echoed the comments from Heglund.

Jason Bergeron, the Assistant Director of the Office of Student Activities, coordinates Greek Life and Leadership for the University, and when asked about the situation, said, “This is an issue that the students are working through in cooperation with the University and as our fraternity/sorority community leaders, we are working with our IFC and Panhellenic Presidents to manage and guide that dialog that’s currently happening.”

The coming weeks of meetings by these governing bodies may determine a new direction for the Greek community at Michigan Tech, but the scope of that change is yet to be determined.