Frat Members Expelled: Penn State Kappa Delta Rho Members Kicked Off Campus


Frat members of the Penn State Kappa Delta Rho chapter have been expelled from the organization. A total of 38 fraternity boys were accused of creating Facebook pages where “compromising” photos of women were shared.

The Kappa Delta Rho (KDR) announcement comes after a May 26 decision by Penn State University to close the fraternity for three years. The national KDR fraternity has also revoked the charter of the Penn State Zeta chapter for three years.

Kappa Delta Rho Executive Director Joseph Rosenberg said the fraternity made its decision regarding the Penn State students on June 4. Rosenberg added that a “thorough and fair review of the facts” relating to the Facebook postings by the frat members was conducted. Information discovered by Penn State University investigators was also reportedly taken into consideration before the ruling.

“It is clear that the conduct of some members of our Penn State chapter did not meet this standard,” Kappa Delta Rho Director Rosenberg added.

The Penn State fraternity accusations surfaced in March. The Kappa Delta Rho chapter was accused of creating and maintaining private Facebook pages with photos of young women, including some nude images. One of the women on the Facebook pages reportedly appeared to be either passed out or asleep when the picture was taken.

Tom Friel is the new president of the Penn State Kappa Delta Rho chapter. Rosenberg said Friel is spearheading efforts to move the fraternity chapter “forward in the future.”

“We are grateful to the young men of the Penn State chapter who assumed responsibility after the regrettable events of the last few months had occurred. They are of course not among those students expelled,” Rosenberg said.

Penn State representative Lisa Powers said the university will not have an official comment on the Kappa Delta Rho expulsions “because the school is not involved with the national chapter.” The Penn State Interfraternity Council initially recommended allowing the fraternity to keep its charter, providing “steps were taken to change the fraternity culture,” but university officials reportedly decided a stronger message needed to be sent.

Rosenberg also noted that the fraternity is enhancing programs which educate KDR members about “sexual assault and abuse of drugs and alcohol.” The organization has also entered into an agreement with Campus Clarity to provide additional training for the membership.

“Out national leadership will continue its commitment to the cessation of inappropriate hazing,” Rosenberg said, adding KDR has joined a national hazing prevention hotline.

Penn State Vice President for Student Affairs Damon Sims issued these findings regarding the Kappa Delta Rho investigation.

“A persistent climate of humiliation for several females including regular posts to the Facebook page of photos that were embarrassing to women, including the aforementioned photos of unconscious or sleeping subjects. Hazing — or fraternity initiation — activities including from pledge boxing matches, or making pledges ‘plank,’ holding their body weight on their arms, with bottle caps placed underneath their elbows. Pledges also were made to create stories containing pornographic images and a ‘sex position of the day.’ The alleged use and sale of drugs and underage drinking.”

What do you think about the Kappa Delta Rho Penn State expulsions?

[Image via: Richard Paul Kane / Shutterstock]

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