Student Association President James Franco said SA spoke with Chancellor Kent Syverud on Thursday to discuss the university’s response to the suspension of SU’s chapter of the Theta Tau fraternity.

Syverud did not attend a forum at Hendricks Chapel on Wednesday night to discuss the suspension. As of about 3:40 p.m. Thursday, the university had not released a campus-wide statement after The D.O. on Wednesday night published a recording of a video of Theta Tau chapter members engaging in what Syverud has called “extremely racist behavior.”

“We conveyed our wish that he was there, and that he should be there from now on,” Franco said of the second Hendricks Chapel forum. Franco said he hopes Syverud understood SA’s concerns and “has gotten the message.”

Franco said he thinks it’s essential that SU administrators make themselves available and attend public events in the next few days, in response to the suspension that was announced Wednesday morning.

“I think he from now on will move his, anything in his schedule to match anything of that degree … or at least I hope so,” Franco said.

But Syverud on Thursday, when approached by a Daily Orange reporter at a Shaw Quadrangle rededication ceremony in Eggers Hall, declined to answer a question about why he didn’t attend the second Hendricks Chapel forum.

“I’m not going to give an interview right now,” the chancellor said.

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MORE COVERAGE: 

• Syverud: SU will start ‘top to bottom’ review of all Greek life policies, activities and culture
• Student Association leaders call for SU Greek life audit in wake of Theta Tau suspension
• Students protest Theta Tau videos outside Chancellor Kent Syverud’s house
• Gallery: SU campus community reacts to Theta Tau videos

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Theta Tau was suspended on Wednesday after the university confirmed it was involved in the creation of online videos showing fraternity members engaging in behaviors that were “extremely racist, anti-Semitic, homophobic, sexist, and hostile to people with disabilities,” Syverud said in a campus-wide email Wednesday.

Franco said he thinks the university will have “a big follow-up” on Friday.

SA is planning to hold a town hall on Monday in response to the suspension. Franco said the town hall had previously been planned, but SA leaders wanted to focus specifically on concerns surrounding the suspension.

Franco and SA Vice President Angie Pati on Wednesday requested an extensive audit of all fraternities and sororities on campus, including social, professional and multicultural organizations.

Both Franco and Pati said the audit’s goal would not be to eliminate Greek life. The audit would determine what Greek organizations are doing well and not well, with an intention of sharing that information with the community, Franco said.

Franco said an external team may review all aspects of each fraternity and sorority, including recruitment strategies, chapter meetings, how social events are run and communication strategies.

Published on April 19, 2018 at 3:57 pm

Contact Sam: sfogozal@syr.edu | @SamOgozalek