Staff Editorial: That time of year for Greeks

It has almost become a campus tradition.

Each spring, one or two fraternities and sororities are investigated by the Office of Student Conduct for alleged violations of University or Greek policies. Some are found guilty and put on social probation; others are cleared of the charges.

It's not unreasonable to expect that at least one member of a campus fraternity or sorority will, knowingly or otherwise, violate one of these policies and get caught.

But when six different Greek organizations -- including three of Penn's seven sororities -- are put under investigation simultaneously, it is a clear sign that the squeaky-clean image projected by fraternities and sororities across campus is nothing more than a facade.

Such is the case with this year's culprits, who have allegedly violated a wide variety of policies, from the Office of Fraternity and Sorority Affairs' alcohol and hazing policies all the way to the University's Code of Student Conduct. While these groups have not yet been deemed guilty of anything, accusations do not just come out of thin air. In fact, some of this year's accused have just finished or are still on some form of probation.

Regardless of whether these allegations prove true, all signs point to a serious problem in the way that OFSA and the University regulate Greek behavior, specifically in the rushing and pledging periods. And what's worse is the outright disrespect for these regulations on the part of fraternities and sororities, made increasingly evident with each investigation.

If any of these organizations is in fact convicted of wrongdoing, OFSA would be wise to show some teeth in the punishments that are handed out. At this point, the only way to prove that these regulations don't exist simply to be ignored is to dole out a punishment so significant that it makes a fraternity or sorority think twice before breaking the rules again.

As for the fraternities and sororities, performing community service and holding information sessions are noble efforts, but they cannot erase the enormous blemish that OSC investigations place on Penn's Greek system.

This is a chronic problem, one that continues to undermine the benefits of Greek life, and it will not go away until administrators and students start enforcing and obeying reasonable regulations on fraternity and sorority behavior.

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