Greek life may get a little drier.

Byline: GREG BOLT The Register-Guard

Drinking could be banned at all University of Oregon fraternities if UO President Dave Frohnmayer approves new rules aimed at fixing what administrators believe is an ineffective system of monitoring alcohol at off-campus parties.

The rules would require all Greek organizations - fraternities and sororities - to have dry houses beginning this fall and would institute new rules regarding minimum grade-point averages, community service and membership development. Failure to abide by the rules could result in chapters being disaffiliated from the university.

If approved, the rules would bring an end to decades of tradition at many fraternity houses, where parties that include alcohol have been a part of house life for generations. They also could give the UO some of the strictest alcohol rules of any university in the country.

The proposal is getting a mixed review at best at fraternity houses around campus. Sororities already have gone to dry houses, but most of the 20 fraternities are still "wet."

"I definitely don't like the idea," said Todd Krueger, chapter vice president at the Sigma Nu house. "I don't want to go dry."

Fraternity representatives said the rules would simply push drinking out into the community, adding to the potential for drinking and driving and doing little to discourage underage drinking. They also worry that the rules would make it harder to recruit new members and exacerbate an ongoing slide in fraternity membership.

Frohnmayer, a fraternity member himself, is expected to announce later this month whether he will impose the rules.

Greg Lobisser, director of student activities at the UO, said the proposed rules came about partly because of concerns raised by some fraternity alumni whose houses already ban alcohol but also out of concern that the current system of monitoring parties isn't effective. That system relies largely on self-compliance, and Lobisser said it just hasn't worked.

"It's totally ineffective," he said. "It seems to me there is a higher number of citations reported in the last couple of years, and there are a lot of parties where there are no citations, but alcohol is still allowed."

Lobisser said there seems to be an increasing number of "illegal" parties, where fraternities do not register the function with the university's Greek Life office as UO rules require. Registering ensures that monitors are present to check for underage drinking and see that other rules are met, such as providing transportation and making sure people aren't over-served.

According to Eugene police, alcohol has been a problem at some fraternities. Between 1997 and 2001, police issued 142 citations for minor in possession at fraternity houses and reported 20 citations or arrests for furnishing alcohol to a minor or allow a minor to consume alcohol.

But alcohol has been a problem on campus as well. UO crime statistics show campus alcohol arrests rose from 80 in 1998 to 198 in 2000, and those don't include several hundred violations that were handled through the university's student conduct system.

The proposed rules aren't new; they've existed for several years as recommendations for campus Greek organizations. But under the proposal they would become minimum standards that must be met to maintain university affiliation.

That endorsement can be important to chapter houses. It not only allows them to be hooked up to the campus computer network and gives them access to incoming students for membership drives, but it also keeps them in good standing with their national organizations.

"It would be very unusual for the vast majority of national fraternal organizations to continue to keep their local chapters open if they did not have university affiliation," Lobisser said.

Under the new rules, fraternities found to be out of compliance essentially would have a year to fix the problem. If they don't, the student affairs office would recommend that the chapter be disaffiliated and ask Frohnmayer to notify the chapter's national office and ask that the house be closed.

Many fraternity members think that goes too far. They point out that chapters at Oregon State University have had much more serious problems with drinking, including two recent fatalities, but that OSU President Paul Risser has stated he doesn't think requiring dry houses is the answer.

Kyle Knepper, president of the UO's Interfraternity Council and a Sigma Phi Epsilon member, said that's frustrating for students. And while he understands the university is just trying to make houses safer for their members, he questions whether the new rules are the best way to do that.

"I don't think anyone doubts the fact that college students are going to drink," he said. "We're really afraid these problems are just going to move further off campus where people aren't watching."

"What I feel is the university is just taking this issue and moving it out of their realm," said Brandon Cresswell, chapter president of the Sigma Chi house. "Instead of solving the problem we simply move it away from the college and out into the community."

Sigma Chi already is a dry house, and that means if it wants to have a party with alcohol it must hold it elsewhere. Cresswell said it can easily cost $4,000 for rent, security, food and transportation - his house has spent as much as $8,000, something that can be "financially crippling" for a local chapter.

Cresswell said Sigma Chi abides by all the rules, raises $10,000 a year for the Children's Miracle Network and stays in good standing with the university. He thinks that should count for something.

"I feel like we work really hard, and one of the things I think should come with working really hard is having a social life," he said.

Fraternities are hoping Frohnmayer doesn't approve the alcohol ban, but they're split on whether they will comply if the ban is imposed. Krueger said his house is checking with its national office to see if it would keep the house open if members decided to disassociate from the university.

Justin Stephens, chapter president at Chi Psi, said he doesn't think his chapter will buck the rules if an alcohol ban is adopted. But he said houses like his that register their parties and play by the rules are being punished for something they didn't do.

"It's more about them taking away our personal rights than it is about drinking," he said. "We definitely enjoy our freedom of being able to do what we want in our house. We use it as a privilege and we know it's a privilege and we don't misuse it."

Lobisser said the university knows the proposed rules won't put a stop to underage drinking or the problems that go along with it. The idea isn't to change all of youth culture, he said, but to ensure that university-affiliated housing options are safe and healthy.

"I don't think the university can change the nature of the culture," he said. "We're trying to make these living environments alcohol- and illegal-substance-free. It's not a fair charge to the university to eliminate drinking. We don't know how to do that."

If Frohnmayer approves the plan, the UO won't be the first U.S. university to ban alcohol at fraternities, but it will be one of only a handful to take that step.

Pete Smithhisler, vice president for media and public relations for the North-American Interfraternity Conference, said universities have been wrestling with the alcohol issue for almost 10 years. He said the national organization supports any measures that help deter drinking.

"The NIC would stand ready to support any university community in their effort to help students address the issue of alcohol on their campus," he said.

"Joining a fraternal organization is an opportunity to learn leadership, community service and to gain a sense of oneself, if you will. And part of that issue is how do you handle alcohol as leaders within your community."

CAPTION(S):

CHRIS PIETSCH / The Register-Guard Brandon Cresswell accepts a lei from Stephanie Donnelley while Sigma Chi brother Tim Rinaker holds their nonalcoholic drinks during a "dry" spring party Friday night.