The family of a UC Berkeley student who drowned at a fraternity party in November has filed a lawsuit alleging serious safety failures, raising broader questions about how fraternities manage risk at social events. Even though fewer than 15% of students across California universities participate in Greek life, there is a complex system of national, local and university regulations governing affiliated chapters to ensure student safety. The Interfraternity Council, or IFC, is a national organization that governs and supports local chapters at universities. There is an IFC chapter and a Panhellenic Council that governs sororities at universities with at least two groups. Additionally, each university outlines requirements for each chapter to remain in good standing. For example, UCLA requires chapters to submit a risk management plan before each social event, and San Diego State has a universitywide “dry period” for its recognized student organizations, including fraternities and sororities, that prohibits alcohol-related events between Aug. 1 and Oct. 1. Vital to each chapter’s success are the student-designated safety coordinators at fraternity events. James Islas is a former risk chair for the Phi Kappa Sigma fraternity at UC Berkeley, where he acted as “the director of management policies to ensure that there’s safety and compliance with your chapter following the national standards of the IFC.” “Additionally,” he said, “we coordinate safety protocols and logistics for large-scale social events.” During chapter meetings, risk chairs are responsible for assigning sober monitor shifts and expectations for social events, as well as discussing the kinds of…
