University of Maryland Suspends Greek Life Indefinitely

The University of Maryland has suspended its Greek life, saying that multiple sororities and fraternities have been “conducting activities that have threatened the safety and well-being of members of the University community.”

In a letter Friday announcing the suspension, UMD said that all new member program activities for the sororities and fraternities have been suspended indefinitely and the social groups cannot host any events, on or off campus, where there is alcohol.

“Fraternity and Sorority Life is an important part of the academic and social experience at the University of Maryland,” the university said in a statement to HuffPost. “Our decision to suspend new member and alcohol-related activities was made after careful consideration of reports, observations and data-driven analysis of behaviors that we felt posed a threat to the safety and well-being of some members of our community. No single or specific incident led to this decision. Our decision was made to prevent such a significant incident.”

Fraternities and sororities are fighting back. In a statement to The Washington Post, three Greek organizations said that UMD hasn’t given an explanation for the suspension or allowed them to defend themselves.

“This shut down was so sudden and we’re frustrated with no answers,” Spencer Doyle, chapter president of the Phi Kappa Tau fraternity, told The Washington Post. “It is not fair to chapters operating the right way.”

According to national hazing statistics listed on UMD’s website, 95% of students who are hazed won’t report it. According to the Hazing Prevention Network, 55% of fraternity and sorority members will experience hazing.