Sig Ep to remain on campus, for now

The status of the Sigma Phi Epsilon (Sig Ep) fraternity is in jeopardy after members of the fraternity declared it "done" to the University and the national organization. Although Tufts told the group that it cannot fold, the financial and membership troubles it is facing illustrate larger problems that the Greek system is currently facing.

"None of us believe that it can be saved," former Sig Ep President Jeff Fox said. "The other seniors and I decided that it wasn't worth continuing."

Sig Ep has seen a drop in its number of pledges over the past few years, and only had four new members last year.

Fewer pledges mean fewer dues, contributing to the financial strain on the house. Despite Sig Ep's recruitment efforst, "we didn't get the number [of pledges] we needed," said Fox. "We couldn't pay for everything. What [dues] we got went to administrative costs rather than parties."

But when Fox and the other brothers went to the University with their decision, they were rebuked because shutting down would create an issue with their lodging house.

The City of Somerville provides the lodging house license in recognition of the fact that the University, and the national office of the fraternity, agree to provide support and supervision. The chapter is also able to obtain indemnification through the national office and the alumni association of the chapter.

Without that support, the city could decide not to issue the lodging house license, which would relegate the fraternity house to residential zoning, which allows only four unrelated people to live in a house.

"The students made an assumption that the lease that they signed to live in the facility would continue in force. There is no way to know for sure what city officials would have done if the University informed them that the occupancy use had changed," Dean of Students Bruce Reitman said.

Many believe that Sig Ep's woes are due to an overall decline of the Greek system's popularity on campus.

"There is not as much of a fraternity system as there used to be _ these days, the chapters are more individual houses than they used to be," Reitman said. "The members who live in the chapter houses tend to be the newest members who just received bids. I think there used to be more pride in the system when upperclassmen lived in the chapter houses."

"I don't know if it was mismanagement or bad luck, but their numbers did go down and they have been in decline for a while," Inter-Greek Council president Adam Biacchi said. "When I got here [this year], they were all ready to quit...the only people who [didn't] want to throw in the towel [were] the sophomores."

Many have also cited a police crackdown on the fraternity system since the 1997 alcohol poisoning death of a MIT fraternity pledge and the subsequent lawsuit that cost MIT $6 million as a source of Sig Ep's difficulties. In the fall of 2000, the University and the city of Somerville took the then-president of Sig Ep and another member of the fraternity as well as the president of Theta Delta Chi to court for providing alcohol to a minor at a party.

During last year's Senior Week, Sig Ep was caught with multiple kegs and had to pay fines of $300 per keg to the University, in addition to the national Sig Ep organization's fines, according to Biacchi. He explained that this added to the house's financial strain, causing members to think that the chapter could not be saved.

A senior in another fraternity said the University's attitude toward fraternities had changed in his time at Tufts. "When I was a freshman, the atmosphere was a lot more laid back. As long as your house didn't do anything really stupid, the University would leave you alone. Now it's almost like they want us to do something wrong," he said.

Fewer parties mean less unity in the fraternity and less visibility on campus, which leads to fewer pledges. Sig Ep, for one, has seen its brotherhood cut in half the past three semesters.

"When I pledged as a freshman, the house was a lot stronger... more brothers, more unity," Fox said.

Low pledge numbers not only affect financial issues, but a fraternity's status on campus; chapters need at least 15 members to remain recognized.

Sig Ep is not the only member of the Greek system having trouble attracting new members. Membership in Tufts fraternities and sororities has dropped from a high of 18 percent of the enrollment down to 11 percent.

In 1998, Theta Chi nearly became a "colony" after it failed to attract any new pledges. Other Greek houses still face the same problem.

"There are other fraternities and sororities that are having difficulty attracting new members to replace the graduating seniors," Reitman said. "Popularity seems to be tied to the house _ the larger and nicer houses attract new members more easily."

Biacchi said he didn't think fraternities were trying any less to recruit new members, "but there may just be some sort of paradigm among the student body that the frats aren't as popular as they may once have been."

Tufts' large international population _ 12 percent _ may also be part of the problem for the Greek system, as international students tend not to be involved in it, according to Reitman.

Although the demise of Sig Ep was caused by factors affecting all Greek houses on campus, other fraternities say they are still going strong. Each house "ebbs and flows," in popularity Biacchi said.

Since Sig Ep revealed its intention to close to the University, the younger members of the fraternity have decided to work to save the group. When alumni learned of the house's crisis, they raised enough money to support the fraternity. The house then elected a new executive board and plans to hold rush this semester.

The national Sigma Phi Epsilon organization itself is very concerned about the group's decision and organized Sig Ep alumni to bring new life into the chapter. "They didn't want to see the chapter go under," said Scott Thompson, the director of communications for Sigma Phi Epsilon.

The national organization and Sig Ep alumni are handling much of this "revamping." "The alumni are trying to get our undergraduates to sell the fraternity experience to potential brothers. Alumni have experience they can bring to the table in order to get more pledges," said Thompson.

The chapter's newly-elected president, Bryce Petruccelli, is optimistic about Sig Ep's future. "We're not going anywhere," he said. "Its been on a decline but as long as everyone else is there we'll be here."

Many, though, remain skeptical that Sig Ep will be able to revive itself. "They're still very much a shell of what they were and on shaky ground," Biacchi said.

The University appears supportive of the fraternity, as administrators said it has value on campus.

"They have their challenges, but [Sig Ep is a] wonderful group of kids," said Ed Cabellon, chair of the Council on Fraternities and Sororities. "Like the other groups on campus, they want to succeed, do good things, and provide a service."

Ver??nica Aguilar and Steven Leibowitz contributed to this report.