The Delta Chi fraternity house at VCU. Credit: Flickr
by James A. Bacon
After a freshman died from overdrinking in a fraternity party, Virginia Commonwealth University has hired a consulting firm to investigate the university’s Greek life. The fraternity culture that led to the death of 19-year-old Adam Oakes certainly warrants looking into. But I had a sneaking suspicion as I started reading the article in the Richmond Times-Dispatch today that the investigation would not stop there.
Indeed, my suspicions were confirmed by the fifth paragraph. “This comprehensive review of major facets of Greek life will assist us as a university community in realizing our values related to a climate of respect, care and inclusion while also promoting health and safety,” said Charles Klink, VCU senior vice provost for student affairs.
Uh, oh. This study will be about race like everything else at VCU is.
The university has hired Dyad Strategies, a Florida-based firm that has reviewed Greek culture on nearly 100 campuses. The firm will examine several aspects of Greek culture, including alcohol, sexual assault, hazing, sense of belonging, social status, openness to diversity, commitment and motivation for joining. The firm will begin by issuing a survey, then will visit VCU in April to conduct interviews and focus groups.
Hazing of pledges is a real problem at many fraternities. Excessive consumption of drugs and alcohol is a real problem. Hook-up culture and regret sex is a real problem. Parents should not have to worry about sending their children off to college only to have them turn into alcoholics, be subjected to sexual assault… or die in a pledge ritual. College administrations have a responsibility to prevent such behavior.
But the VCU administration wants to cast a wider net.
Bacon’s Rebellion has reported on the increasing animosity of Leftist students at the University of Virginia toward fraternities and sororities, and it would not surprise me if anti-fraternity sentiment was prevalent at VCU as well. Although some are some minority Greek organizations, fraternities and sororities are predominantly white institutions. My worry is that the VCU investigation has the potential to be subsumed by a larger assault on “white privilege” and “structural racism” on campus. The fact that Dyad Strategies will be examining “inclusion” and “openness to diversity” is a sure tip-off that VCU wants to explore the racial angle. I don’t want to pre-judge the Dyad study or what VCU will do with it, however, so I’ll simply register my concern for now.
Regarding the drinking incident that precipitated the study, a Dyad white paper has identified three disturbing trends about the fraternity experience during the age of COVID-19.
Alcohol consumption has increased nationally by 14% since the onset of the pandemic. But among 12 Dyad fraternity and sorority clients, binge drinking increased markedly during the past year after several years of decline.
Another trend is the decline in the number of casual joiners this year, as opposed to students who always thought they would join a Greek organization when they went to college. The s0-called “always joiners” drink more and are more likely to have alcohol-related risk incidents.
Dyad also has seen in a shift in the motivations for hazing. Broadly speaking, there are four — solidarity, loyalty/commitment, instrumental education, and social dominance. “Social dominance motivation is connected to feelings that new members must ‘earn their membership’ through activities designed to reinforce the social hierarchy and power structure within the group.” Social dominance hazing is the most closely correlating hazing tolerance, moral disengagement, conformity and alcohol use.
Summarizes the white paper: “More socially motivated students joined fraternities during COVID, and because of the stress of navigating college during a pandemic, drank more than they otherwise would have while developing some problematic attitudes about hazing because of a lack of meaningful new member programs during the pandemic.”
