The national committee of the Delta Zeta sorority recently kicked out 23 of the 35 members of DePauw University's Delta Zeta chapter, including all the chapter's overweight members and the only Korean and Vietnamese members, causing a massive controversy within the sorority and on DePauw's campus, according to The New York Times. AU Coordinator of Greek Life Danny Kelley said he finds Delta Zeta's actions offensive, disrespectful and unlike the principles of Greek life at AU.
DePauw's Delta Zeta chapter had experienced a decline in recruits and membership. The Times reported there was concern that the drop was caused by a negative stereotype of the girls in the sorority as "socially awkward," a stereotype that came from a survey conducted by one of the psychology professors at DePauw.
Delta Zeta's national officers decided it was a stereotype that needed to be changed, according to the Times. After they interviewed DePauw's chapter members, the national committee claimed 23 women were "insufficiently committed," according to the Times, and informed them to vacate the sorority house.
Only a dozen women were allowed to stay in the chapter, all fitting "conventionally pretty" standards. Half of those women, indignant at the disrespect to their colleagues, left the sorority.
One of those who quit in protest was Kate Holloway, a senior who was living in the Delta Zeta house when the news of the cuts came.
"They did the membership review in November and I didn't realize until three days before the eviction letters were received that everyone except for the few who fit the sorority archetype would be asked to leave," Holloway said. "My response was to put on a mullet wig and rose-colored glasses and run in the front door in the middle of a pre-recruitment event and act kind of obnoxious. Then I quit."
According to Holloway, everyone had two weeks - one of classes and one of finals - after receiving their eviction notices to secure living arrangements for the following semester.
As for why she quit, Holloway said she thought the national committee's actions were ridiculous.
"I had no room in my life for the kind of blatant yet cunning disrespect that they were employing in this treatment of my sisters," she said.
The rest of the DePauw community was equally enraged, especially the administration, which had received no warning of the drastic cuts, according to the Times.
When asked to clarify its decision, the sorority's public relations representative e-mailed a statement saying its actions were aimed at the "enrichment of student life at DePauw," according to the Times.
Kelley said he found the sorority's actions offensive. In AU's 2007 Recruitment Guide, Kelley stressed the importance of girls remaining true to themselves and making sure that they were treated with respect.
"If an American University fraternity or sorority [kicks out members based on looks or weight] this would contradict the values espoused by the organization," Kelley said. "Such behavior could result in the university no longer willing to host a chapter of the respective national fraternity or sorority."
Joanna Holmes, a sophomore in the College of Arts and Sciences and member of the Body Image Collective of Women's Initiative, said she found the sororities' actions disturbing and thought the chapter was discouraging its women when it evicted members.
Holmes said she thought DePauw's Delta Zeta chapter failed to be a good sorority.
"I feel like sororities can be a good thing if they support the people in them, but it's bad if they're going to make people worried about their membership because they look a certain way," Holmes said.
She said it would be especially difficult to have these body image pressures as a freshman in college.
"You're going around [and] meeting new people," Holmes said. "It's tough to be worrying about being 10 pounds too heavy."
Compared to other college campuses, AU has a fairly small percentage of students in the Greek community. Greek organizations make up 17 percent of the student body, according to the admissions Web site. Sororities and fraternities are seen as social groups with common interests.
"[Pledging is] fine," said Togtokhbayar Ganzorig, a sophomore in the College of Arts and Sciences and recent Phi Mu pledge. "I haven't done very much. I like them because they're really laid back and don't force me to do anything."
AU's diverse background also allows for a wide variety of women to join Greek life. In addition to the traditional sororities, AU also offers co-ed business and co-ed service fraternities.
"I think they're all really cool girls," said Alan Yuill, a sophomore in the School of Public Affairs in service fraternity Alpha Phi Omega. "Some individuals are stereotypical, but for the most part they're all normal girls, just in a sorority. I don't think it's like that here, with all the emphasis on looks."
Eagle Staff Writer Marissa Newhall contributed to this report.
