The University of Iowa Interfraternity Council, or IFC, is working to become more engaged in the Iowa City community to overcome stereotypes surrounding fraternities following Alpha Delta Phi’s hazing suspension and multiple investigations into Greek life organizations.
Alpha Delta Phi was officially suspended on Feb. 25 following an investigation by the Office of Student Accountability, according to the UI Fraternity and Sorority Life webpage. The fraternity was found to have hazed initiates after 56 people were discovered with food covering them in the Alpha Delta Phi house’s basement.
The fraternity is now unaffiliated with the UI until at least 2029.
The IFC hosted its first collaborative event with the UI-REACH program on March 26 and just hosted its second event Wednesday, a bingo night collaborating with UI Campus Activities Board, or CAB.
Upward of 100 people, including members of both organizations and students who saw the event advertised on social media, occupied the Iowa Memorial Union International Ballroom on Wednesday night.
Although events are not mandatory for the fraternity members, attendance is encouraged. Incentives for Wednesday’s bingo night included a mini fridge, a Nintendo Switch, a poker set, LEGOs, hockey tickets, and Hawkeye T-shirts, accompanied by merchandise provided by CAB, with all proceeds being donated to the UI Stead Family Children’s Hospital.
The bingo night event is one of many that the IFC hopes to hold. Isaac Johnson, vice president of philanthropy and service, said he wants to stay engaged in the community.
“I think we’ve gone a long time trying to isolate ourselves, distancing ourselves and not being active in a community that, quite frankly, we should be active in,” he said.
Johnson said the IFC is trying to break the barrier between Greek life and other student organizations.
“[The bingo night] is an opportunity to meet members of other fraternities, or, in tonight’s case, members of a non-Greek community, and grow there,” he said.
Theodore Retsinas, vice president of public relations and marketing, wants to use their social media platforms to help enhance other chapters’ voices.
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“We have a lot more visibility than a smaller chapter, so I encourage everyone to reach out to me and use my role specifically as a megaphone for what they want done and to kind of push their agenda and push their events,” Retsinas said, addressing the chapters.
When it comes to beating the stereotypes of fraternities, the IFC hopes that by reaching out to student organizations, planning events, and staying consistent, they’ll be able to grow their positive image and prove that fraternities shouldn’t be represented by only the negative image surrounding them.
IFC President Kyle Lawrence believes that acknowledging the past reputation issues the IFC has had is very important in moving forward.
“We are taking accountability, and we don’t let things like that go under our nose. We don’t just push it aside and move on,” he added.
Retsinas wants to shed light on the positive initiatives that fraternities are taking.
“If you see, or hear, a fraternity in the news, something really bad has happened. That’s one thing that we kind of want to move away from. We want to show that IFC does have some good things, and the men aren’t just unapproachable or intimidating,” Retsinas said.
Lawrence said the events they’ve been planning all revolve around building community. While IFC wants to unite chapters, they also want to be involved in the world outside of Greek life.
“We’re a part of the university,” he said. “We want to close out this semester and hit the next semester strong.”
IFC hopes that when future students rush, they’ll know about the collaborative events that the chapters are a part of and expect to be a part of the community.
“Our goal is to be seen by the rest of campus as a resource,” Johnson said. “If an organization needs volunteers for a collaborative event, we want to be there.”