Penn State Has Indefinitely Banned Alcohol At All Fraternity Parties Following Student’s Death
In the wake of the death of PSU student Timothy Piazza stemming from a fall he suffered at the Beta Theta Pi house, Penn State has indefinitely banned alcohol at all fraternity parties.
From Philly.com:
Pennsylvania State University this week banned fraternity parties serving alcohol following the death of a student last weekend and mounting concerns of a task force looking into Greek life on the University Park campus.
The university gave no time line for the moratorium but said it will last until new policies and practices can be put in place.
“This is just a way to gain some time to take a look at the issues,” said university spokeswoman Lisa Powers.
I don’t think this ban surprises anybody; it was how this story was always going to proceed. This is risk management 101 stuff if you’re a large public university (or any university, for that matter), though I’m sure it’s not a favorable course of action for many PSU students. It’s important that those negatively affected by this ruling don’t place blame on anyone, though — especially the Betas. If anything, they should be reaching out to the Betas and consoling them in their time of need. Losing a brother is just that — the loss of a loved one — and what the PSU Betas are going through is far, far worse than prohibition. America was dry for 13 years; you can do it for however long PSU decides is pertinent.
I’m going to emphasize here that nobody should be jumping to conclusions about what occurred at the Beta house that led to Timothy Piazza’s death. Until all the facts come out, everything is just rumor and hearsay. But, as I stated as a PSA in my somehow controversial article about Piazza’s tragic passing without ever implying it’s what happened that night, please call emergency services if you think one of your friends may be in danger. If you let them “sleep it off” so either you or your fraternity don’t get in trouble, it may be the last thing they ever do..
[via Philly.com]
Image via Penn State Beta Theta Pi
Why was the last article so controversial? All he said was save the kid…
9 years ago at 11:26 amThe Penn State Odyssey published a hit piece about it that they’ve since redacted. Their general point was, “How dare Jared try to turn this tragedy into a life lesson that may save lives.”
9 years ago at 11:29 amWhat a bunch of bitches. Not even a well intended message can be brought up because we’re Greek.
9 years ago at 11:38 amThe Odyssey is a greek-run newsletter so I’m pretty sure that’s not the reason..
9 years ago at 11:44 amKnow the girl who wrote the article actually. She completely missed the point of the article on TFM
9 years ago at 3:53 pmDon’t worry Rolling Stone will find a way to disrespect this brother’s death with a twisted story and zero facts. RIP brother Piazza
9 years ago at 11:26 amSucks, but an expected response for the time being. Rip, shitty turn of events for the family and the fraternity.
9 years ago at 11:28 amGuess what happens now? Drinking gets pushed further underground, kids are even more scared to call the cops for fear of repercussions, and the same damn thing continues to happen. As someone who lost a friend in my pledge class to a similar situation, I don’t understand how schools don’t realize this is a terrible strategy that fixes nothing in the long term.
9 years ago at 11:33 amBecause the majority of the decision makers are non Greeks, and not just that, they are typically individuals who didn’t associate with that kind of collegiate lifestyle (moderately drinking) when they were in school.
9 years ago at 1:38 pmPushed underground? What happened here? The so called “men of principle ” at this frat didn’t give a shit about their new “brother”, they were only worried about their own selves. They never called for help. They could have called his roommates to get him, they could have dropped hm at the hospital, they could have even taken him 100 ft. down to the corner and made an anonymous 911 call, but they didn’t. The people at the party who made comments about his obvious bad condition could have called but they didn’t. They let him die to protect their partying. So how would further banning alcohol make it worse? Maybe if people faced serious penalties for the excessive alcohol and hazing ( which this was ) like expulsion from school, things would change. But their are too many rich,well connected people to this university. Change the laws in Pa. and make it a criminal act when you do not help someone in obvious need. Right now, Pa. laws basically says you can walk right past an injured person and you do not even have to call the police. Great laws.
9 years ago at 11:38 amI’m a fraternity member at psu, this social probo isn’t expected to have any huge permanent consequences, and should be over by spring break. Still, rip state patties day this year if you’re under 21
9 years ago at 11:55 amAlso a fraternity member at PSU. It should be fine in the long run. For now it sucks and beta is fucked but it’ll be alright.
9 years ago at 5:11 pmYeah it will be alright except for the family, and friends. No big deal. It will be alright? Wow..
9 years ago at 11:21 amJust go to Rolla for Patties. It’s a huge thing down there
9 years ago at 10:17 pmHey look on the bright side, an alcohol ban keeps PSU free of any liability if another incident like this happens. No liability means no lawsuits and no lawsuits means more MONEY for the school !!
It’s almost as if Penn State is placing its financial well being over the lives of their students..
9 years ago at 12:12 pmA ban only works if it is enforced. PS will not enforce..too lazy..all talk.
9 years ago at 12:01 pmGuys it’s just a TEMPORARY BAN till we figure out what the hell is going on.
9 years ago at 12:24 pmEverybody should already know what’s going on – emphasis on college students drink alcohol in excess and make poor decisions, but also threats of punishment for taking proper action in a bad situation can exacerbate poor decision-making.
9 years ago at 1:20 pmMy first mistake was expecting anyone to actually read the article so they would get the joke.
9 years ago at 3:04 pmThe commenters have decided to approach this story with a serious tone.
9 years ago at 3:44 pmAlcohol kills do cocaine.
9 years ago at 4:35 pmGood point, no one ever died from cocaine!
9 years ago at 10:57 pmLenny Bias
9 years ago at 4:05 pmThank god I didn’t go to this school. Banning alcohol in college is like banning roller coasters in amusement parks. What the hell is the point of going then???
9 years ago at 5:07 pmYeah what is the point in going. $45,000 a year so you can party. You are definitely on the 7 year plan. Moron.
9 years ago at 11:45 amSo Penn State is OK with 30 years of child rape, not ok with alcohol consumption? Got it.
9 years ago at 5:21 pmI laughed.
9 years ago at 10:32 pm