MINARET UNIVERSITY OF TAMPA’S NEWS SOURCE SINCE 1933
THE
Vo l u m e 7 7 N u m b e r 1
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August 27, 2010
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ut.minaret@gmail.com
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minaretblog.com
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theminaretonline.com
Orientation
2010
Students arrive to a familiar but changed campus By Mike Trobiano
Scott Silvestro / The Minaret
Resident assistant Jacyln Pappas distributes room condition inventory forms to freshmen Elizabeth Berkowitz and Benjamin Johnson during the first phase of check-in.
To view photos from the Orientation 2010 Slideshow, visit minaretblog.com.
TAMPA - On Tuesday, new students arrived on campus to drop off their belongings and embark on a new chapter of their adult lives. Numerous organizations participated in the opening events and not only helped ease the stress of the relocating undergrads, but also served as a clear message that the students at the University of Tampa are very involved. With over 6,000 enrolled at UT this fall semester, the most in the university’s history, it’s evident major changes are underway to fit the need of the growing population. A new health facility, faith center, science building and the renovation of several residence halls are just a few ways UT is looking into the future. While lifting heavy boxes and finding parking seemed to be all that new students could think about this week, a new semester has arrived for the class of 2014,
Three Sorority Sisters Suspended for Rush-Hazing Stunts Students reported abusive practices that left some Delta Sigma Theta pledges feeling ridiculed and harassed. By ALEX VERA Editor in Chief
Editor’s note: Due to the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), the names of the three women involved in the alleged acts are withheld. TAMPA - Three University of Tampa students were accused of hazing new pledges during a two-month period last semester. According to a complaint submitted to circuit court last May, Delta Sigma Theta pledges reported that they were “yelled at, made to run, do push-ups, squats, eat garlic wrapped in Big Red gum and drink hot sauce, hold a match between their fingers while reciting a pledge, had rocks and grass thrown at them and that they were paddled.” The three sorority members specifically
identified in the complaint were high-ranking officers within the Delta Sigma Theta sorority. S.C. and L.P. were seniors and M.B. was a junior.
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These organizations were sanctioned collectively and received a probation period of one semester. The Delta Sigma Theta members were sanctioned individually.
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“We had to run chains, do push-ups, paddled until tears, had rocks thrown at us, grass thrown at us and put in our hair and clothes, cursed at, made to held huge bricks and do static squats until we almost collapsed.”
In defense, the women filed a petition stating that, as black females, they were unfairly targeted by the university’s judicial board.They stated that members in fraternities Kappa Sigma and Sigma Phi Epsilon engaged in similar controversial actions including tasering.
and M.B.’s car and put their heads between their laps. Once they arrived at a location, they were told to line up as the sorority sisters said their applications were “crappy and that they should put them in the garbage.” The pledges were given explicit instructions to not wear the color red or to wear shorts, only knee-length or longer pants. On Feb. 24, one of the victims said that S.C. and L.P. made a pledge purchase their breakfasts and have them delivered to L.P.’s apartment by 7:22 a.m. On Feb. 28, pledges were blind-folded, made to run chains, run suicides, do mountain climbs and do push-ups while reciting sorority doctrine. The victim stated that L.P. threatened to bite her nails off and that S.C. threatened to urinate on her. Another pledge, said she was forced to “answer like an animal (I believe it was a camel)” whenever she was asked a ques-
The Hillsborough County Circuit Court dismissed the complaint, stating that the university was not at fault.
Breakdown of Events
A victim who participated in the rush stated that they were told to get into S.C.
See 4 “Final Call” NEWS Minarets Cause Controversy for RNC
[Page 3]
ARTS + ENTERTAINMENT
TRAVEL SERIES
Exclusive Interview with Animal Liberation Orchestra [Page 8]
Colombia: Art Within Culture [Page 12]
COMMENTARY Tampa’s Great Divide A night out with columnist John Jacobs [Page 15]