Like all on-campus greek houses at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, the Sigma Chi house at 1510 Vine Street is a private property, independent from Universtiy Housing.
The units all have housing contracts with UNL. These contracts allow the houses to accept freshmen students while subjecting them to university regulations, such as UNL’s dry campus policy.
To ensure compliance, the houses are randomly searched by a private security firm, Frye, Frazey and Associates, said Linda Schwartzkopf, director of Greek Affairs. She said the contract with Frye, Frazey and Associates has only been in place since January.
Before this, Community Service Officers and university administrators did the searches. Switching to a private security firm allowed searches to be conducted at times when individuals were more likely to break the rules.
The service costs $300 per chapter per year, and all greek chapters pay for a portion of the service whether or not they have housing.
A group of off-duty police officers working with the firm search all areas of the houses for instances of non-compliance, except individual’s personal rooms, which are off limits.
“The purpose of (the security firm) is to ensure the security and health and ensure chapters are complying with university policies,” Schwartzkopf said.
The routine searches also help build rapport with the administrators of the house.
“I think having a comfort level with someone in law enforcement who does routine walks through your house makes it easier to go to that person when problems do arise,” she said.
In the case of Sigma Chi, police officers were unauthorized to enter residents’ bedrooms without a search warrant. On March 18, aided by a search warrant, officers pulled 120 cans of beer and two dozen bottles of hard liquor from residents’ rooms. The seizure occurred while officers were searching for evidence of hazing, which happened at an off-campus residence.
Despite the findings at Sigma Chi, both Schwartzkopf and Juan Franco, vice chancellor for Student Affairs, think greek residences receive enough police scrutiny. Neither sees more random searches, increased numbers of private security officers or less privacy rights as a solution to student misconduct.
Franco said the answer to preventing future allegations of hazing on campus isn’t more police but more education.
“I think letting students know about (university) policies and getting advisory boards more freedom and an active interest in watching houses is the answer,” he said. “I don’t put blame on all (the other) houses.”
Franco also said he “was very surprised by how much alcohol was in the (Sigma Chi) house,” and also that the university strongly opposes off-campus greek party houses like the one where the alleged hazing occurred.
“But I do want to emphasize that most of the chapters follow the policies well and the units do do things right,” Franco said. “But if chapters aren’t following the policies, then this is an opportune time to clean their house.”
kiahhaslett@dailynebraskan.com
Greek clean-up requires fewer cops, more education
Published: Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Updated: Wednesday, April 29, 2009
1 comments
Your name
Did "switching to a private security firm really allow searches to be conducted at times when individuals were more likely to break the rules" in the greek houses? I was told that UNL's Community Service Officers worked evenings and late nights and that they did random checks to keep my child and others safe, plus enforce policies. CSO's were not always loved by all students simply because they spoiled fun on occasion, however, at least this parent and a few young people I know appreciated them being around, watching, and keeping everyone safer. What really makes this new provider better? In case no one has told you UNL, many house members love the new security team and the new freedoms that come with them. The statements in this article tell a much different story from what you will hear in at least a few of the houses that I am aware of. Which story is true?
