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Kappa Sigma’s bid for a UTM chapter blocked

Recruitment fliers posted on campus taken down


Over the holiday weekend, posters asking for men interested in Kappa Sigma fraternity to contact David Aurich began appearing on campus.

Aurich, a regional recruitment chair for the fraternity, said that he had received recommendations from members at the Lambuth Epsilon-Psi chapter that there may be men interested at UTM.

“We were trying to put the word out to see if there were guys interested at UTM to start a new fraternity on campus,” Aurich said.

The UTM Office of Greek Life learned of the posters early Tuesday, and immediately asked IFC member organizations to remove them.

“They did not follow guidelines and proper channels to come on campus,” said Louis Ragsdale, Coordinator for Greek Life and Student Organizations.

Ragsdale said that he has prepared a letter with photocopies of sections of the UTM Student Handbook pertaining to new organizations.

Under the heading of “Student Organizations” the handbook states that a greek organization’s “relationship with the institution requires a more detailed and exacting peer and administrative review.”

UTM recognizes the Interfraternal Council, Panhelenic Council and National Pan-Hellenic Council as responsible for the peer review requirement of greek organizations.

Ragsdale also cited violations of the “Solictation on Campus” guidelines in the handbook.

Kappa Sigma in the future? “We’ll probably just let it lie,” said Matt Bott, Assistant Executive Director of Kappa Sigma’s national office. “We just wanted to see if there was an interest.”

Ragsdale said that the organization’s failure to follow protocol may hurt their chances of coming on campus in the future, but did not say there were any sanctions.

“We’ve already expanded this year with the addition of Sigma Chi,” Ragsdale said.

Sigma Chi’s UTM colony came to campus in August of last year. The organization is still working towards receiving a national charter.

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