Zeta Psi closed temporarily

The University closed the Zeta Psi fraternity house to everyone except residents, in an agreement between the Dean of Students Office and Zeta Psi President Peter Schaefer, according to a press release from the Dean of Students Office.

The closing comes after two intoxicated Zeta Psi pledges sustained head injuries after a party at the fraternity last Thursday night. Freshman Mark Phillips had only minor injuries, but freshman Sebastian Gonzalez suffered serious injuries, requiring him to spend four days in the intensive care unit of the Tufts New England Medical Center.

Both Schaefer and Inter-Greek Council President Jessica Grasso declined to comment on the events surrounding the closing.

Gonzalez is still in the hospital, but his father -- who flew into Boston from London following his son's injury -- said that there has been recent improvement in his condition and he has been moved out of intensive care. "The last several hours have been very encouraging," he said yesterday evening. Gonzalez, who suffered minor brain damage from his fall, is having trouble talking and will likely need speech therapy.

Taking off the rest of the semester is an option, but Gonzalez's father said that they are waiting to see how the younger Gonzalez recovers. "We're not absolutely sure of [taking a semester off], but it's very possible," he said. "We're going to take it one day at a time."

Zeta Psi will remain closed while the Dean of Students Office investigates "issues of possible underage drinking and possible hazing," Dean of Students Bruce Reitman said in the press release sent out yesterday afternoon. Reitman also said he will be working with the Tufts Police Department to "ask a lot of questions of those who attended the party."

Gonzalez's father said that he feels mistakes were made, and that underage drinking is not acceptable. "There are some problems here, and we'll try to sort them out with the fraternity and try to make sure they don't happen again," he said. He also said that he had had "an open and frank discussion" with Reitman about the issue.

In the meantime, no Zeta Psi brothers, pledges, and visitors will be allowed in the fraternity house at 80 Professors Row except for its 17 residents, and all alcohol on the premises has been removed.

The Universities' policies have become much stricter since MIT and Phi Gamma Delta (PhiG) were forced to pay millions of dollars to the family of Scott Krueger, an MIT freshman pledge who died from alcohol poisoning after a PhiG party. PhiG settled with the Krueger family last November for $1.75 million.

President Larry Bacow, and administrator at MIT at the time of the incident, said in the Daily last week that Krueger's death has "affected every university" and their policies.

Several students have already visited the hospital this year for injuries sustained while intoxicated during the Naked Quad Run last semester. The injuries ranged from cuts and abrasions to a broken ankle and a chin laceration, and one sophomore remained unconscious until 7 a.m. the day after the run due to acute alcohol poisoning.

Bacow also said last week that instances such as this year's Naked Quad Run show that alcohol use on campus needs to be managed to keep students safe.