Chico State suspends Greek activities after death

A senseless and tragic death shuts down the entire greek system
Chico State suspends Greek activities after death - San Jose Mercury News:

CHICO, Calif.—Chico State University suspended all Greek activities Thursday after the death of a student who drank too much alcohol while celebrating his 21st birthday.

Campus President Paul Zingg said fraternities and sororities will be barred from recruiting students or having social events until the spring semester. They also will have to cover or remove Greek letters from their houses during the suspension, according to the Chico Enterprise-Record ( http://bit.ly/XKiWDf).

Mason Sumnicht, a communication design major, was found unresponsive at an apartment last week after a night of drinking at downtown Chico bars with friends. The San Diego native was taken by ambulance to Enloe Medical Center and placed on life support after being treated for extreme alcohol poisoning.

Sumnicht died Thursday from an alcohol overdose, according to the Butte County coroner's office.

CSU officials would not comment on any fraternity affiliation for Sumnicht, but the campus newspaper, The Orion, reported that he was pledging the Sigma Pi fraternity this semester.

In addition to the young man's death, school officials said there have been other recent problems involving fraternities and sororities, including allegations of hazing, sexual assaults and drinking with potential new members.

Students don't get a "free pass" for allowing a brother to drink 21 shots on his 21st birthday and "pass out in his vomit,"

Asaid Zingg, speaking to a gathering of the Greek community in the Bell Memorial Union Auditorium. Zingg said he had demanded changes from campus Greeks seven years ago when a student died during a fraternity hazing incident and there was a riot in downtown Chico. Things improved greatly, but the situation has deteriorated recently, he said.


"I don't think it's fair to generalize us all into the negative group," Courtney Wessel, a member of the sorority Sigma Omega Phi, told the Chico Enterprise-Record.
———
Information from: Chico Enterprise-Record, http://www.chicoer.com (More detail)

Clemson University Employee Arrested For Stealing School Funds

SLED: Clemson University Employee Arrested For Stealing School Funds | WSPA

Eli Ker

A former Clemson University employee is accused of stealing thousands in university money meant for students, and using it for himself.  29 year old Eli Ker, of Easley, was arrested and charged with breach of trust, following an investigation by SLED and University Police.  Ker was the associate director of fraternity and sorority life, according to the University.

A release issued by the University says the investigation began last month after a university employee noticed irregularities in a bank statements and contacted the school's police department.  Police say Ker took $33,820 from a Panhellenic bank account between August 2011 and August 2012, for his own personal use.

According to a SLED warrant, Ker created fake bank account statements to cover up the crime.

Ker appeared before a University municipal court Friday, and was released on a $10,000 personal recognizance bond.