Rodin: Policy involved 'great deal of consultation'

FIJI brothers allowed to return to house under numerous conditions FIJI brothers allowed to return to house under numerous conditionsThe suspended Phi Gamma Delta fraternity chapter will remain under investigation through May. Officers from the national office of the Phi Gamma Delta fraternity will continue to investigate the suspended FIJI fraternity until May while an independent but parallel investigation is pursued by the University. Though the permanent fate of the fraternity chapter and its house located at 3619 Locust Walk remains unknown at this point, the 20 FIJI brothers who were forced to move out of the house when it was declared a crime scene moved back in yesterday as "individual students" completely unaffiliated with the Greek system, University President Judith Rodin said yesterday. "Because we are nearing the end of the current semester, and in support of the students' academic pursuits, individuals have been given the option of moving back into the former Phi Gamma Delta house," Office of Fraternity and Sorority Affairs Director Scott Reikofski said. The University temporarily relocated FIJI brothers to empty dorm rooms and a local hotel last Sunday after the house was transformed into a crime scene when 26-year-old Penn alumnus and FIJI brother Michael Tobin died falling down a flight of outside stairs. The individuals living in the house are permitted to remain there until the end of the semester provided that no alcohol enters the house, each student pays an additional $2,000 security deposit and administrative supervisors monitor the house and visitation. Each brother is permitted to sign in up to two persons at a time with one of two alternating live-in supervisors, unless family or study partners are visiting, according to FIJI House Manager Lou Antonetti, a College junior. The brothers were notified by e-mail Saturday evening regarding move-in and met with Reikofski Sunday afternoon at the Penn Tower Hotel to discuss the new occupancy agreement. Antonetti said Reikofski gave the brothers the option of living in the former FIJI house under the stipulations of the agreement or moving into the Sansom Place residential facilities, formerly known as the Graduate Towers. Some of the brothers said they had reservations about immediately moving back into the house where one of their brothers had died. "We've had a week now to recover," Antonetti said, adding that the brothers are ready to unpack their duffel bags. Since the national FIJI office "temporarily suspended" Penn's charter pending a formal disciplinary process stemming from FIJI's violations of alcohol and risk management policies at an alumni dinner March 20, the chapter was supposed to vacate its house, Reikofski said. Last week, University Police Chief Maureen Rush said the main reason the house remained closed was because during the investigation of the scene, authorities discovered several violations of the fire and safety codes. Antonetti said he noticed two new doors and a "pretty spotless" building following inspection by the contractors OFSA hired. While suspended, FIJI cannot hold any chapter activities since the national office's probe determined that the fraternity violated a risk management policy. The violated policy states that FIJI chapters are not to purchase and/or provide alcohol to anyone and that if a chapter wants to hold an event, participants must bring their own alcohol or hold the event at a third-party location. The University is investigating allegations of violations of its alcohol and drug policy and the Student Code of Conduct. Once the University and national investigations are complete, the InterFraternity Council can begin its own investigation of infractions the fraternity may have committed during the incident, said IFC President Mark Metzl, a College junior and Tau Epsilon Phi brother. As to the future of the FIJI fraternity and its house, the brothers remain unclear of their fate. "I don't know yet [about our status next year]," said FIJI President Martin Park, a Wharton junior.