Advertisement

Wesleyan requires frats to go co-ed in 3 years

Wesleyan ordered all residential fraternities to adopt a co-ed policy in the next three years.

By Gabrielle Levy
The Beta Theta Pi house at Wesleyan in Middletown, Conn. (Wikimedia)
The Beta Theta Pi house at Wesleyan in Middletown, Conn. (Wikimedia)

MIDDLETOWN, Conn., Sept. 23 (UPI) -- Wesleyan will require all of its residential fraternities to allow both male and female members in the next three years or risk getting booted off campus.

The Middletown, Conn., university announced in an email to the community a board of trustees decision to curb some of the abuses associated with Greek life, for which the 3,000-student school has become somewhat emblematic.

Advertisement

"The trustees and administration recognize that residential fraternities have contributed greatly to Wesleyan over a long period of time, but we also believe they must change to continue to benefit their members and the larger campus community," wrote board of trustees Chair Joshua Boger and university President Michael Roth.

"With equity and inclusion in mind, we have decided that residential fraternities must become fully co-educational over the next three years," the letter said. "If the organizations are to continue to be recognized as offering housing and social spaces for Wesleyan students, women as well as men must be full members and well-represented in the body and leadership of the organization."

Advertisement

Wesleyan's fraternities made headlines when a female student fell out of a third-story window at the Beta Theta Pi house earlier this month. While the school says the rule changes are not a direct response to any one incident. The Beta house, known on campus as the "Rape Factory," was declared off-limits to students and the national fraternity suspended the school's chapter for a year.

Beta's national charter does not allow co-education. Neither does Delta Kappa Epsilon's, but a third residential fraternity, Psi Upsilon, does.

"Psi Upsilon is historically a men's fraternity which allows our chapters to admit women," Psi U's national executive director Tom Fox told Business Insider. "It will be up to the Xi undergraduate chapter how they would like to proceed and we will support them in their decision."

Another fraternity at Wesleyan, Alpha Delta Phi, went co-ed in 1972, and while it faced conflict with its national chapter, it ultimately was able to come to a resolution.

"Psi U, whose national permits coeducation, has asked to meet with me later this week to begin discussions and planning," Dean Mike Whaley told the campus publication Wesleying.

"You probably already know that Psi Upsilon's national permits coeducation, while Beta's and DKE's do not. My understanding is that Alpha Delta Phi had a similar challenge with their national when they co-educated many years ago -- how they overcame that obstacle could be instructive for the organizations."

Advertisement

Wesleying took note of much support from students and alumni. But DKE's chapter indicated it would resist the changes.

"It is my understanding that our national charter does not allow co-education, so this unilateral decision by the administration is problematic for us," said Terence Durkin, DKE-Wesleyan's president. "It seems to do away with freedom of association for a specific, carefully chosen segment of the so-called Wesleyan 'community.'"

"The university is telling us who our friends are going to be, and who we must choose as our leaders. This is just not right," he continued. "This is just not Wesleyan. We are exploring all options with our alumni and undergraduates, and we will have more to say in the near future."

While DKE and Psi U will be affected by the new rules, as will Beta if it reorganizes on campus, none of its sororities are residential. Also exempt are the non-residential fraternities and one off-campus sorority, Rho Epsilon.

Wesleyan follows in the footsteps of Trinity College in Hartford, which became the first Connecticut school to require its residential Greek houses to institute a coeducational policy in 2012 after a report found widespread problems.

Latest Headlines