Raising questions about the organization of Greeks Against Rape and the feasibility of fulfilling its request for monetary contributions from individual houses, the Interfraternity Council refused the group's solicition and instead donated a sum almost five times less than the amount the group originally wanted.
In need of money to pay for programming and outstanding debts, Greeks Against Rape, an organization begun to educate Greek pledges about rape and sexual assault, asked each Greek house to donate $50 to the group, Greeks Against Rape President Michelle Wendy '95 said.
Alhough the Panhellenic Council, the governing body of all sororities on campus, originally approved the plan, the IFC, comprised of the 14 fraternities decided only to donate $125 total, a figure which Panhell ultimately matched.
The IFC refused the request based on several questions about the solicitation, including how the money would be used and why the fundraising was being held in the summer as opposed to the fall, when smaller houses would have more members on to support the cost, according to Wendy.
"[Greeks Against Rape] came to us and asked us for money with no real proposal," IFC Social Chair Chris Donley '95 said. "They just said it was for Fall term pledge education and speakers."
"They didn't know who the speakers would be, they had no figures, and no definite plans," he added. "We had a problem giving money off the top."
The group also presented a reduced proposal to raise money to pay for an outstanding bill for copying a manual, according to Donley. "I'm not really sure what manual -- they didn't say much about that either," he said.
The IFC agreed to pay for half of the $250 bill, according to IFC President Scott Swenson '95. However, the Council could not require its member houses to contribute any set amount of money, he said.
"Certain individual houses expressed concerns financially, or with the organization itself," Swenson said. "We felt we could not require houses to pay the $50."
Though the $50 had been approved by Panhell, Wendy said that the Council decided to reduce their request to $25 from each Panhell sorority, since the IFC was contributing a total of only $125.
However, the money from Panhell houses will come from each individual house's donation, rather than from the Panhell budget, she added. The IFC money will not come from individual houses unless a house decides to make its own contribution, Swenson said.
In the summer, most Greek houses run on a tighter budget than Fall, Winter, or Spring terms, according to Donley, who is also president of Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity. "If we were to give $50 from the house, it would leave us $1 left from each brother's dues for the summer," he said.
Some individuals at the IFC meetings objected to Greeks funding all the programming of Greeks Against Rape, Swenson said.
"Sexual assault is something that affects the entire campus, and even the entire College, and some houses did not know if the Greeks should have to pay," he said. "Greeks Against Rape is planning on having five speakers, at approximately $1,000 per speaker. That's a lot of money per house, and most houses can't afford it."
While debating the funding proposal, the IFC questioned the organization of Greeks Against Rape.
"It's a young organization," Swenson said. "They really don't have any concrete plans yet and there have been some leadership transition problems. I wish them the best of luck in determining what their ultimate goals are, but the IFC can't give a blank check to an organization whose goals we don't know."
Though the IFC supported the group's ideas and agreed the topic needs to be addressed on campus, financial restraints and disorganization led to the discounted amount the IFC paid.
"Whatever kind of cause it is, we're not going to throw money away blindly," Donley said. "If we don't see that figure, we don't pay."
Because of the lack of funding, Greeks Against Rape will not sponsor any programming events this summer and will solicit contributions in the fall, when houses are back at full membership, Wendy said.
