SAE faces uncertain future

by Heather Quitos

Sunday, January 15, 2006 00:00

National fraternity Sigma Alpha Epsilon issued a cease and desist order on its University of Wisconsin chapter Dec. 19, suspending any chapter operations until further investigations are performed.

The order is in response to the 266 citations chapter members received from the Madison Police Department after hosting a Halloween party which police described as "dangerous."

Madison Police Public Information Officer Mike Hanson said the party — hosting a reported 600 people in a house with a capacity of 99 — functioned as an illegal tavern.

"When it's 600 people, not only is it an alcohol issue, it's a personal safety issue, a fire-hazard issue and a code-enforcement issue," he said. "You mix all of these components into a barrel, you're setting yourself up for some problems."

SAE now has financial problems as well — it was fined more than $94,000 in citations, none of which are covered by the fraternity's insurance policy.

SAE national fraternity spokesperson Brandon Weghorst said that though his speculations are premature, the chapter will most likely face two situations after investigations: be sanctioned to an alumni commission where all operations must be approved by a board of alumni, or have its charter revoked.

"[The party was] something obviously that goes against everything that the organization stands for," Weghorst said. "The fine amount is unfortunate, but the national organization is not assuming responsibility for the debt."

But former UW chapter president Matt Blumenfeld, who was in charge of the party, said the fraternity was trying to keep students off State Street that night.

"We didn't want people to get involved in what happens on State Street," he said, citing past years' disturbances. "Obviously, it can't be seen that way, but we were trying to prevent people getting hurt."

Though officers advised against Halloween parties, Blumenfeld said SAE was not the only fraternity that had planned to host a large event.

"There were fraternities that were planning on having parties and saw what had happened to us on Friday and didn't want to get involved," he said.

To determine both the status and punishment of the fraternity, the national chapter will send two representatives in the next few weeks to Madison to investigate the matter. Weghorst said the representatives will meet with university and chapter officials, as well as alumni, to make a recommendation on the fraternity's future.

While some criticize the students for throwing the party after being told not to do so, Blumenfeld defended the organization.

"What people don't know is that our chapter has one of the highest average GPAs in the country, and we have people involved all over campus," he said. "We're not just a party fraternity. We do a lot of other things."

Blumenfeld also said the chapter is looking to take proactive measures, such as helping with future university plans for Halloween, talking to other fraternities and sororities about hosting safe parties and getting involved in alcohol-education programs.

"By cooperating with everyone, we hope they'll understand that everyone makes mistakes," he said. "We all have plans for the future, and we're trying to see that they continue."

Weghorst admitted it is "unfortunate" that UW's party-school reputation may influence how fraternities and sororities operate or appear.

"The undergraduates that join need to realize that it may be a social fraternity, but that doesn't mean that it's a social hour all the time," he said.