For the first time in five years, the Interfraternity Council expelled fraternities Monday after discovering a pornographic movie was filmed in a fraternity house and another group was not recognized by the university.
Phi Kappa Tau and Delta Psi Delta were expelled. At the same meeting, Zeta Beta Tau gained IFC membership.
Zeta Beta Tau was an associate IFC member for a long time but got its national charter two weeks ago. The IFC wanted the fraternity because it is a non-hazing, non-pledging fraternity, said President Jay Garcia.
"All the hard work we put into wanting to be part of the solution," he said.
The IFC notified Phi Kappa Tau and Delta Psi Delta on April 11 and 12 that they would undergo an IFC judicial hearing.
The judicial board recommended that IFC suspend Phi Kappa Tau until the national board meets in May to discuss the Chico chapter.
The fraternity chapter presidents disregarded the board's recommendation and expelled the fraternity.
"The IFC doesn't condone throwing porn parties," said Nick Hollingsworth, president of the IFC. "It was in bad taste."
Dan Avery, president of Phi Kappa Tau, said it upsets him that the IFC did not follow the judicial board's recommendation.
After asking Avery to step outside of the room, the IFC voted to expel Phi Kappa Tau.
"It's a democracy, so if that's what they decide, that's what they decide," Avery said.
The presidents thought that by letting Phi Kappa Tau remain affiliated with the university, the IFC would be condoning their actions, said Keith Michaels, chief justice of the IFC judicial board.
The board also considered the group's lack of participation in community events and in philanthropy, Michaels said.
But Phi Kappa Tau was one of the few fraternities that did philanthropy this semester, Avery said.
He thinks they are being suspended because of the porn filming, he said.
"I think they're just trying to put more weight on the decision," he said.
National Phi Kappa Tau CEO Steve Hartman could not be reached by press time.
Local fraternity Delta Psi Delta was suspended because it failed to meet the IFC's rules and standards, Hollingsworth said.
It also doesn't have an adviser and hasn't turned in a member roster to the Student Activities Office for three semesters. The university does not recognize it as a student organization.
The IFC judicial board met with Delta Psi Delta two months ago because of the university recognition. The judicial board told Delta Psi Delta members they had to get a faculty adviser and make progress, Michaels said.
At the hearing, Delta Psi Delta still did not have an adviser.
But Delta Psi Delta will get an adviser, said Mario Madrid, a fraternity alumnus. This isn't the first time Delta Psi Delta has had trouble with IFC.
"It happened before," he said, "and we'll do what it takes to get back on."
Delta Psi Delta President Tony Capone could not be reached by press time.
The IFC was willing to step forward and do what is right, said Connie Huyck, Greek adviser. "To do this to their peers is a big step."
Both groups can petition to get back in the IFC, but they must demonstrate improvement in their values.
"It isn't the end of the road for these groups," Michaels said. "Both groups have been strong in the past."
The Orion Online - Fraternities lose IFC recognition
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