INTER-FRATERNITY COUNCIL

OF THE ROSE-HULMAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

BY-LAWS

 

Adopted October 7, 2002

 

Section 1. Rush

 

A.     Definitions

 

1.      A rushee is defined as any first year male Rose-Hulman student who is neither 21 years of age nor recognized as a transfer student from an accredited college or university by Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology.

 

2.      A member is defined as an initiate, alumni, or pledge/associate of a fraternity.

 

3.      A rush function is defined as any event sponsored by a fraternity or a fraternity member at which a rushee is present.

 

B.     Open Rush

 

1.      The fall rush calendar will be determined by the IFC rush committee. This includes, but is not limited to, dates for: open rush, closed rush, informal rush parties, formal rush parties, and Preference Tuesday. This calendar for the following fall rush, shall be prepared during the spring quarter.

 

2.      Residence halls will be open for rush on all days not specified as closed rush periods from the hours of 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. unless otherwise stated by the IFC rush committee as closed rush.

 

3.      Fraternity houses will be open for rush Tuesday through Sunday from the hours of 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 a.m. and Friday and Saturday from the hours of 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 a.m. unless otherwise stated by the IFC rush committee as closed rush, the date and time specified on a party form, or when a chapter house clearly indicated that it is closed. This rule also applies to actives’ private residences.

 

4.      There will be no rush functions between the times of 6:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m. during the first week of open rush. Rush shall begin at 6:00 p.m. on the first Tuesday of open rush as designated by the rush calendar.

 

C.     Closed Rush

 

1.      In accordance with Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology policy, there shall not be any organized contact, or contact with the intent to rush, with a student during the summer preceding his arrival on campus, by a member of a fraternity.

 

2.      Closed rush imposes the following restrictions: no functions are permitted; no contact is permitted between rushees and actives except at school sponsored activities; no rushees are permitted to be in fraternity houses or actives private residence; no actives are permitted to be in residence halls where potential male rushees reside except for Resident Assistants, Sophomore Advisors, actual residents, or students pursuing justifiable academic endeavors.

 

3.     Closed rush dates shall be decided by the IFC Rush Committee..

 

D.     Accessibility of Alcohol and Drugs

 

1.      No alcohol and/or drugs will be permitted at any rush function.

 

2.      No alcohol and/or drugs will be permitted while a rushee is present at fraternity houses or members’ private residences.

 

3.      No member will be permitted to consume alcohol or drugs in contact with a rushee.

 

4.      No member will be permitted to purchase alcohol and/or drugs for a rushee.

 

E.      Rush Parties

 

1.      There will be two (2) formal rush weekends and an informal rush schedule.

 

2.      The exact dates and times of all formal rush parties will be determined by the IFC rush committee.

 

3.      The exact attendance at all formal rush parties by rushees will be determined by the IFC rush committee. The names of all rushees wishing to attend specific formal rush parties must be obtained by the IFC rush committee at least five (5) days in advance of each formal rush weekend.

 

4.      Rushees will be permitted to attend only one formal rush party per fraternity per formal rush weekend.

 

5.   Rushees will be permitted to attend a maximum of five (5) formal rush parties during the first formal rush weekend.

 

6.   Rushees will be permitted to attend a maximum of three (3) formal rush  parties during the second formal rush weekend.  A fourth formal rush party can be petitioned for if the rushee agrees that he strongly desires to have a fourth formal by having both parties contact the IFC president and advisor.  Arrangements will then be made as it best permits.

 

 

7.   Formal rush parties will be scheduled to allow thirty (30) minutes of traveling time between each formal rush party. Each fraternity will be responsible for the rushees’ transportation to and from the formal rush parties. The rushees must be delivered to their residence halls at least fifteen (15) minutes prior to the beginning of the next formal rush party.

 

8.   No contact between actives and rushees will be permitted after the last scheduled formal rush party until 5:00 p.m. on Preference Tuesday.

 

F.      Preference

 

1.      Fraternities are not permitted to extend written bids to rushees until Preference Tuesday.

 

2.      Fraternities are not permitted to extend oral bids to rushees until the second formal rush weekend.

 

3.      Each fraternity must submit to the IFC faculty advisor a list of those rushees who are to receive bids from that fraternity by 12 am on Preference Tuesday at a site determined in advance. It is the responsibility of the faculty advisor to place bid cards from each fraternity into envelopes for each rushee. Also included in each rushee’s envelope will be a NO PREFERENCE card.

 

4.      It will be the responsibility of each rushee to go to the auditorium between 7:00 a.m. and 8:00 a.m. on Preference Tuesday. There he will receive an envelope containing bid cards from all fraternities, which have extended bids to him, in addition to a NO PREFERENCE card. He may sign only one card, making all unsigned bid cards invalid at that time. A rushee with no signed bid cards will be considered as having NO PREFERENCE.

 

5.       A rushee becomes a pledge or associate, in the eyes of the Council, when he signs a bid card.

 

G.     Rush Etiquette

 

1.      Each fraternity will be held responsible for the actions of its members.

 

2.      When rushing in residence halls between the hours of 6:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m., each fraternity is permitted a maximum of twenty (20) minutes per room unless there is no other fraternity waiting to see that rushee.

 

3.      Consecutive visits to any one room by the same fraternity will not be permitted.

 

4.      When actives are inside a rushee’s room, the door must remain open.

 

5.      While in contact with a rushee, no active will be permitted to refer to any other fraternity in any way.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Section 2. Pledging/ Association and Initiation Requirements

 

A.     Grades for Pledging and Associating

 

A fraternity may offer a Formal bid to pledge or associate to any rushee irrespective of grade-point. However, in the event that a freshman pledge/ associate member fails to make a grade-point-average of 2.0 or more for the fall quarter, he is no longer a pledge/ associate member and must not participate in any formal or informal pledge/ associate member program. It shall also be the responsibility of each fraternity to offer a bid only to those students who are aware of the financial obligation of accepting a bid.

 

B.     Depledging or Deassociating

 

A man that depledges or disassociates from a fraternity must wait six (6) calendar months before pledging or associating another fraternity.

 

C.     Grades for Initiation

           

A pledge may be initiated only if he has a 2.0 cumulative or a 2.0 previous quarter.

 

Section 3. Policy on Hazing

 

The Inter-fraternity Council strictly prohibits fraternities from the participation in activities which recklessly or intentionally endanger the mental or physical health of its members including the forced consumption of liquor or drugs for the purpose of full initiation into or association or pledging with the fraternity.

 

Section 4. Policy on Alcohol Use

 

A.     Consumption

 

Consumption of alcoholic beverages will be permitted by the Council only in accordance with all applicable federal, state, and local laws and with all Institute rules. This ruling will be expected to be self-enforced by the individual members of the fraternities and their guests.

           

B.     Advertising

 

Any form of advertising done by a fraternity at Rose-Hulman shall have no implication of alcohol. The president of the fraternity shall be responsible for the enforcement of this rule. If this rule is violated, the Dean of Students and the President of the Inter-fraternity Council shall have the power to remove such advertising, after which the president of that responsible fraternity shall be notified. Any advertising done off campus shall comply to all local rules where it is placed.

 

            C.  Events

 

Any event where alcohol will be expressly present at a Chapter house i.e. a party, must be registered with the Office of Student Affairs with the appropriate documentation.

 

 

Section 5. Scholarship

 

A traveling trophy shall be awarded each quarter to the fraternity with the highest grade-point-average for the previous quarter, as figured by the school. This trophy will be presented by the president of the Council at a regularly scheduled meeting of the winning chapter or colony. Any fraternity winning the trophy three consecutive quarters will retire the trophy.

 

Section 6. Greek Weekend

 

A.     The Weekend will consist of inter-fraternity contests held in the interest of improving inter-fraternity relations.

 

B.     A Greek Games Chairman will be elected in the Council, and shall form a Greek Games Committee. The committee will be made up of one representative from each chapter and the Greek Games Chairman. Its function will be to schedule the events, prepare annual rules for Council approval, and oversee all Greek Weekend events, and a system for awards.

 

Section 7.  Violation Litigation

 

A.  Accountability

 

1.  A fraternity as a whole is accountable for their members.

 

2.  A fraternity is responsible for actions of their guests at their house.

 

B.  Definition of Charges

 

1.  Major Rush Violations

 

a.  Violations of Alcohol and Drug Policy as it applies to rushees.

 

b.  Contacting a rushee during periods designated No Contact or closed rush with the intent to rush

 

c.  Any form of slander against another fraternity after second formals are concluded

 

d.  Any combination of three minor rush violations deemed to have a pattern detrimental to the rush process

 

2.  Minor Rush Violations

 

a.  Violations of rush etiquette as specified in Section 1, paragraph G

 

b.  Violation of Residence hall hours (8 am to 9 pm)

 

c.  Violation of Rush hours for houses (8 am to 1 am Sunday through Thursday and 8 am to 3 am Friday and Saturday)

 

C.  Trial for Major Rush Violations

 

1.  Motion for trial is submitted with good claim to the IFC President, Vice-President and Advisor.

 

2.  Trial date and time will be announced and confirmed in a 48 hour period if the President, Vice-President and Advisor see that it is necessary to move forward.

 

3.  Trial will follow the format of a jury trial with rules designated by IFC.

           

D.  Hearings for Minor Rush Violations

                       

1.  Hearings for minor rush violations will occur immediately at the conclusion of the next IFC meeting following the instance of a                                          violation.

 

2.  Guilt and Punishment will be determined by 3/4 of the representitives present.

 

E.  Punishment

 

1.  Upon determination of guilt, Punishment will be determined by jury.

 

2.  Punishments may include monetary fines, suspension of a rush privilege, or random bid subtraction.

 

3.  Execution of Punishment falls upon the President, Secretary-Treasurer, and Advisor as required.

 

 

 

 

 

INTER-FRATERNITY COUNCIL

Statement on Risk Reduction and Access of Alcohol

December 16, 1999

 

 

The fraternities of Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology promote the safe and responsible use of alcohol through the following principles:

 

1)      Each fraternity will comply with all Federal, State, and Local laws and policies involving alcohol.

 

2)      Each fraternity will participate in an alcohol awareness program at some time during the school year.

 

3)      At no time will a fraternity participate in the sale of alcohol.

 

4)      The Inter-fraternity Council sponsors a completely “dry” rush at all times, regardless of all other policies.

 

5)      Neither Inter-fraternity Council nor an individual fraternity may co-sponsor an event with an alcohol distributor, bar, or tavern where there is alcohol present.

 

6)      No fraternity will sponsor “open” parties.

 

7)      An alternate beverage will be available at all parties.

           

8)   Alcoholic beverages may not be dispensed on the campus or in fraternity houses or property owned by the chapter.  This would include the use of beer trucks, kegs, etc.....which are clearly for the use of mass consumption by students.