Phi Kappa Tau continues to be under temporary suspension after being issued a cease and desist letter on March 11 following an alleged incident of hazing.

The university is continuing to investigate the incident of hazing as well as the conduct that endangered a member of the campus community, Chico State Public Relations Director Andrew Staples said. 

While it is still not confirmed what incident caused the cease and desist to be issued, it was delivered shortly after a video circulated on social media that depicted a pledge from the fraternity licking a dead rat.

The Orion attempted to verify the correlation, but, in an email, Staples stated he couldn’t speak on the matter.

“I can’t discuss the specifics of the situation while the investigation is ongoing,” Staples stated. “And, even if after it concludes, FERPA privacy laws will limit what we can disclose.” 

As of now, Staples said no final outcome or disciplinary action has been taken. 

The Orion reached out to a member of the fraternity to get a comment, but were told the school has asked them not to speak on the matter. 

While under suspension chapters lose the following according to the policies and procedures handbook: 

• Use of campus facilities for meetings and events 
• Programming and leadership development training and materials from Fraternity and Sorority Affairs 
• Involvement in the Interfraternity Council (IFC), College Panhellenic Council (CPC), and/or Multicultural Greek Council (MGC) events/socials 
• Involvement in Greek community events, including, but not limited to; Greek Week, Leadership events, Wildcat Welcome Events, and other FSA/SLL sponsored events
• Ability to participate in official recruitment new member education/intake process 
• Utilize the tabling resources, which include:
  • Tables 
  • Chairs  
  • EZ Ups  
  • Speakers  
  • Etc.

The handbook also states, “chapters placed on probation or suspension due to judicial violations are reviewed and sanctioned case by case. All conduct related issues are processed and filed through the Office of Student Rights and Responsibilities. Chapters that have received hazing allegations with substantial evidence (as determined by the Office of Student Rights and Responsibilities) will be placed on a Cease and Desist.”

The current fraternities that are unrecognized by Chico State include:

• Alpha Omicron Pi
• Alpha Sigma Phi
• Delta Chi
• Delta Psi Delta
• Phi Nu Chi 
• Sigma Nu
• Sigma Pi
• Theta Chi
• Tau Gamma Theta

The Orion will continue to update as more information is provided. 

Milca Elvira Chacon and Jenna McMahon can be reached at orionmanagingeditor@gmail.com