Brothers,

 

In recent days, allegations of criminal conduct connected to our Alpha Chi Chapter at Penn State have drawn considerable public attention — unflattering in nature and damaging to our Fraternity and our reputation, soiling more than 170 years of collective work aimed at cultivating values and principles in the men who wear our badge. We have fielded many inquiries from our members about this matter, and we simply cannot answer all of them individually. So I write to all of you plainly, so that you hear directly from your Grand Consul what we know, what we do not yet know, and what this moment asks of us.

 

First, some background on the chapter. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Penn State suspended the chapter over violations of the University's gathering restrictions - in their judgment, a serious matter, but not, in ours, one that warranted shuttering a chapter with more than a century of history behind it. In hindsight, we believe our Fraternity made the right choice. We stood by our brothers and allowed Alpha Chi to continue operating unrecognized, paired with improved risk management planning, rather than see it disappear. Separately, Penn State moved to a deferred recruitment model in the late 2010s, delaying when incoming students may join a fraternity. That policy runs contrary to the principle underpinning Mission 365 — our conviction that recruitment is not a season but a year-round obligation of brotherhood. Because of that, forced deferred recruitment is a policy we do not intend to embrace anywhere. This difference in philosophy is why we have not pursued recognition from the institution again, and we will not until the institution permits men to join a fraternity on their own timeline. As we know from our very origins, Sigma Chi stands by its principles, and this is no different.

 

Here's what we know. The conduct under investigation is criminal in nature and is alleged to involve a small number of individuals. Of the fourteen people arrested in this matter, three are connected to our Fraternity. To be clear, these are men who were initiated and active members of our chapter at the time the alleged crimes took place. None of them are presently students at Penn State, nor are they active members of our chapter. The events in question took place nearly three years ago. They do not reflect who we are now, nor who the overwhelming majority of our brothers — at Alpha Chi and everywhere else — have ever been.

 

Here's what we don't know. The most sensational thread the media has seized upon is a claim that pledges packaged drugs inside the chapter house as part of their initiation. We take that allegation with the utmost seriousness. When we reviewed the grand jury report ourselves, we found that this claim traces to the account of a single arrested individual — an account notably vague as to how many young men, if any, may have been involved, to what extent, and where it took place. In fact, the grand jury report makes no mention that any alleged pledge involvement was connected to initiation into the Fraternity, nor does it suggest that any chapter officers were aware this was occurring. We expect to learn more in due time, but until then, we will not draw conclusions from what remains vague. We share this not to minimize the matter, but because our brothers who were not involved, and their families, deserve precision, not headlines. Each of us would want that same consideration if our name were being unfairly drawn into this. So I ask all of us to exercise restraint in assuming who may or may not have been involved, and to what extent.

 

Here's what we have done. The individuals arrested in connection with this matter are suspended from the Fraternity pending the outcome of the judicial process. If they are found guilty, they will be permanently expelled. Anyone else found to be connected to this matter will be treated the same way.

 

As to the chapter. Consistent with our standard protocols when an allegation of this kind reaches us, we have placed Alpha Chi on an interim suspension of operations. This does not mean we believe the chapter, as it stands today, is guilty of the conduct now being alleged from years past. Rather, it gives us the opportunity to work with the chapter to fully uncover the scope of what has happened, and to confirm whether anything similar is ongoing. We will take appropriate action once we know what is presently happening — not before.

 

What this moment asks of us all. None of this excuses what may have occurred. If anything, it sharpens the lesson. The conduct of a handful of men, however isolated, however long ago, casts a shadow over every chapter and every brother who wears our badge with integrity. That is the nature of belonging to something larger than yourself - your name is bound to those beside you, for better and, on occasion, for worse.

 

We are entering recruitment season. Let this be the reminder it should be. As you evaluate the young men who aspire to join us, hold firmly to the Jordan Standard. Look for character, not convenience. Choose men who will strive toward the lofty principles upon which this Fraternity was founded — not men who will merely wear our letters for personal advantage. Feel free to share this letter with any prospective member or parent who raises concerns — and better still, show them that your chapter is nothing like the behavior being alleged here.

 

You are not without support in this work. Here's what we know: chapters that engage with the award-winning programming and educational materials available to Sigma Chis stay most closely connected to the purposes of our Fraternity. We have robust opportunities for chapters to deepen that commitment, and I am calling on all members — undergraduate and alumni alike — to invest fully. Here are two examples.

 

This fall, we are launching a revised Preparation for Brotherhood program, built to reconnect our chapters and our newest members with the values we espouse before they ever cross the threshold of initiation. Our Magisters and other attendees at the Krach Transformational Leaders Workshop received a full review of this material, and the overwhelming majority were complimentary of the work invested to make this program more impactful than it has ever been. This fall, every chapter needs to invest fully in deploying Preparation for Brotherhood as it is intended. I am confident that if we do, we will make considerable advancements in the quality of our chapters and, by extension, the Fraternity at large.

 

Through the Bell Chapter Challenge, funded by alumni through the Sigma Chi Foundation, every chapter has a path to deepen its own commitment to those same principles. Chapters whose alumni fund their participation will receive scholarships, along with leadership and educational programming proven to reinforce and transform chapter culture — keeping them more connected to the Fraternity than ever before. Encourage everyone connected to your chapter to get involved now. To our alumni brothers — your financial support is needed now more than ever. Please consider supporting your chapter's participation in the Bell Chapter Challenge.

 

Brothers, we built this Fraternity on the conviction that friendship, rightly practiced, makes better men of us all; that justice applied fairly to all is an essential part of society; and that a commitment to lifelong learning begets men of wisdom who are prepared to lead. We have been through trying times before, when our mettle was tested, and we have survived and thrived each time. We can do it again. And we will. Let us prove it now.

 

In Hoc Signo Vinces,