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All 29 members expelled
By: Corey Paul
Issue date: 3/7/06 Section: News
Alpha Gamma Rho fraternity has been barred from displaying their letters on their house on Chestnut Street for an indefinite amount of time.
The fraternity's National Board of Directors sentenced Western's chapter to the highest possible form of discipline after a hazing incident that took place during the fraternity's initiation night.
All 29 AGR members were expelled from the fraternity permanently, and the chapter is under probation indefinitely, said Phil Josephson, executive director of the national fraternity.
"They have no authority to operate as they once did," he said.
Former AGR president Brian Peyton declined to comment.
The punishments stemmed from an early-morning discovery of an animal at the AGR house. Police responded to a noise complaint on Feb. 16 at 1436 Chestnut St., where they discovered a goat in a basement storage room.
A member told police the animal was being used to convince pledges they would have sex with it, the Herald previously reported.
The police also discovered alcohol and intoxicated minors.
Henderson freshman Trenton Jackson, an AGR member, was cited for animal cruelty in the second degree by the Bowling Green Police Department.
The national organization found the chapter guilty of violating the national AGR policies against hazing, pledging, illegal initiation and violating university policies, Josephson said.
They also violated the national organization's code of conduct by streaking, he said.
The four hazed pledges were denied acceptance into AGR after the national organization discovered they didn't meet the academic requirements of the fraternity, Josephson said.
The former chapter members can't stay in the AGR house while being recognized as a fraternity, said Jenks Britt, one of three trustees responsible for managing the AGR policy.
Britt also said there hasn't been a decision regarding whether the former members can remain in the house on a permanent basis.
All AGR paraphernalia will be removed from the house, said Britt, who is also an associate professor of animal science at Western.
The sanctions came almost a week after Western suspended the fraternity for three years.
AGR is the fourth fraternity in the last 10 years to be suspended by Western for hazing.
"It's a cyclical thing," said Charley Pride, director of student activities. "Part of the life-cycle of some groups is you have bad years and come back in a few years."
Pride said five groups have undergone "re-colonization," in which they started over stronger with new members after getting into trouble.
The AGRs could come back from Western's three-year suspension early, after their offending members have graduated, Pride said.
The national organization's statutes require the AGR chapter to be reviewed each year, Josephson said. Its charter could be permanently revoked if the national organization finds no significant attempt at improvement.
"We really only want to come back to WKU if we can compliment the vision and mission of the university, and we certainly weren't doing that in the short-term," he said.
AGRs didn't appeal the sanctions given by Western, but they can still appeal the punishments from the national organization.
"It's embarrassing that we don't have a chapter at WKU and we hope to have one in the future," Josephson said. "We believe it can be done, but if it can't, we won't be back for a while."
The goat is still in foster care until the animal cruelty case is settled in court, said Lorrie Hare, director of the Bowling Green/Warren County Humane Society. The case will go to trial in district court on March 16.
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