Penn State frats can host registered socials at State Pattys for first time since 2011
The governing body of the three dozen fraternities at Penn State gave the green light for them to host registered events during State Patty's weekend for the first time in more than a decade, one marked by a considerable decline in crime and alcohol overdoses.
The Interfraternity Council's decision means fraternities must submit individual proposals on how they plan to manage social events for their chapter. The studentcreated drinking event is scheduled to begin Friday and continue through Sunday.
Registered social events — at least in theory — mean there can be no daylong events and are capped at the legal capacity of the house. Only beer and wine can be served at socials with alcohol, which must be distributed by trained servers.
The IFC in a written statement painted registered socials as “significantly more organized, responsible, and safer” than those that are not registered.
“This is not a move we make for the sake of encouraging reckless partying, but actually the opposite,” the organization wrote in a statement shared Tuesday with the Centre Daily Times. “...
The IFC Board predicts that if we ban socials again this year, fraternities will have the same parties with the same number of people at off-campus senior houses, or even in their own facilities. This is, of course, against IFC and PSU policy and we would respond to such incidents accordingly, but we would rather prevent these dangerous events from happening in the first place. When fraternities register those socials with Penn State, we are able to manage the masses and operate safe events.”
In a 2018 editorial published by The Daily Collegian, a former vice president of IFC communications was quoted as saying the organization was “extremely proud” of chapter presidents for not registering any socials during the weekend.
“We commend the maturity and leadership that they displayed with their collective decision,” the organization said at the time.
Fraternities last hosted registered socials in 2011. State College and Penn State police arrested 309 people that year, the most since the police departments began tracking data. A majority of the arrests made by borough police were of out-oftown visitors.
Thirty-six people were arrested in 2021, a decrease of 88%.
Registered socials weren't the only change in that time. Other town-gown efforts included discouraging out-oftowners and paying tavern owners more than $380,000 in 2013 and 2014 to close or stop serving drinks.
University Park Undergraduate Association President Sydney Gibbard wrote in an email Thursday that she's unsure if the decline in arrests was because of the IFC's ban or because of a “larger cultural movement of the University to curb dangerous drinking habits on State Patty's.”
Her hope, she wrote, is that more oversight outweighs any potential “negative consequences.”
“More than anything, I want students to be safe on State
Patty's whether they are at a bar downtown, an independent house party, or a social at a fraternity house. I think the accountability of organizations that create any kind of dangerous environment is an important part of maintaining safety,” Gibbard wrote. “... I don't have enough data on the prevalence or environment of unregistered socials to definitively conclude whether this decision was right, and I had no part in making the decision either. That being said, my understanding is that unregistered socials are inevitable on State Patty's, and registered socials have more accountability measures in place.”
Penn State derided the IFC's decision.
The 16-year-old drinking event that typically takes place between Thon and the university's spring break is set to again see a strong presence.
Borough Manager Tom Fountaine and Andrea Dowhower, Penn State's interim vice president for student affairs, sent a letter earlier this month to the State College Tavern Owners Association asking they treat State Patty's like any other weekend.
That'd mean no drink specials, extended hours, themed promotions or other activities that “could add to the problems this annual event causes,” they wrote.
Residence halls are expected to limit guests to one per room. Off-campus property managers are set to have extra staff available.
Pennsylvania's medical amnesty law bars prosecution for consumption or possession of alcohol for those who seek help for someone who is unconscious because of an alcohol overdose.
Still, Penn State administrators and executives are concerned about the impact of the IFC's decision, university spokeswoman Lisa Powers wrote in an email Tuesday.
“The IFC demonstrated great leadership in previous years by not permitting registered social events on the Friday and Saturday of this weekend. We again strongly encouraged them to do police the same, as their past efforts limited the impact on the Highlands neighborhood, the hospital, police, EMS resources, and the local community,” Powers wrote. “While the IFC believes their processes and risk management efforts will promote safer registered social events than private, unregistered events, we are disappointed in this decision, and worry about its impact.”
Jim and Evelyn Piazza — the parents of Timothy Piazza, a Penn State student who died in 2017 after consuming large amounts of alcohol at a now-shuttered fraternity — have become national advocates to stop hazing in the wake of their son's death.
In a text message to the CDT, Jim Piazza also expressed displeasure with the decision.
“I am disappointed in their decision to change course after more than 10 years and all I can say is that I hope both PSU and local law enforcement act swiftly and aggressively to the extent any rules or laws are broken,” Piazza wrote. “It's my sincere hope that students act responsibly and safely and the IFC and PSU adhere to the agreements made with us 5 years ago.”