(Lincoln, NE) -- The University of Nebraska - Lincoln closes the Phi Gamma Delta fraternity house and suspends operations while the university and police investigate a report of a sexual assault.
Chancellor Ronnie Green issued the following statement Wednesday afternoon:
“We take any allegation of sexual assault very seriously, and the UNL Police Department began investigating this incident as soon as the report came in. That investigation remains open and is ongoing.”
“The Phi Gamma Delta (Fiji) fraternity at UNL is currently under probation for previous violations of university policy. We are closing the fraternity house and suspending operations of the Fiji chapter while this investigation is ongoing, due to potential violations of that probation. This is the responsible action to take for everyone involved.
“We are committed to creating a safe campus environment for our students, faculty and staff. No one should be a victim of sexual assault or harassment, and we have taken a number of steps to provide additional support and reporting mechanisms for our campus. This spring, under the recommendation of the Campuswide Collaborative on Sexual Misconduct, we instituted new mandatory Sexual Misconduct Prevention and Response Training. Additional resources for anyone who has been a victim of sexual misconduct can be found here. The university is also required by federal law to follow a process to investigate and address allegations of sexual misconduct.”
The sexual assault was reported at the Phi Gamma Delta house, near 14th & R Streets, between 11:30 p.m. and 12:00 a.m. Monday night. UNL Police also received a report of a wild party at the off campus Greek house around the same time of the reported sexual assault.
Tuesday night, hundreds of people protested outside the fraternity, chanting “What do we want? Justice” and “If we don’t get it, what do we do? Shut it down!” A change.org petition to ban the fraternity has over 100,000 signatures.
The Executive Director of Phi Gamma Delta also released a statement Wednesday saying the local chapter is cooperating with authorities.
“Phi Gamma Delta takes these allegations very seriously and does not tolerate sexual violence. Our chapter at the University of Nebraska is cooperating with local authorities as they investigate allegations of sexual assault by one of its members. The International Fraternity is working with the University and will take appropriate action pending the findings of the investigation.” - Rob Caudill, Phi Gamma Delta Executive Director