Phi Kappa Psi suspended while SU investigates graphic videos
Phi Kappa Psi suspended while SU investigates graphic videos
SU Public Safety and Community Standards are looking into the clips that quickly circulated on social media.
Videos circulating on social media of an alleged hazing incident involving Phi Kappa Psi have led Syracuse University to suspend the fraternity.
In a campus-wide letter, SU Chancellor Kent Syverud confirmed the university’s knowledge of these videos, which have been circulated on Instagram, X and YikYak, and denounced their graphic content.
“I am disgusted by the actions that appear in these videos and condemn this conduct,” Syverud said in the email statement issued Wednesday afternoon.
Syverud said Phi Kappa Psi was placed under “immediate interim suspension” and that the fraternity’s national office has also ordered them to halt all activities.
The short videos each contain graphic content the Chancellor described as “repugnant.” One video depicts alleged fraternity members forcing themselves to vomit over two students lying on the ground, while another is shown at the end tied up to a pole and with duct tape covering his mouth.
Syverud also said SU’s Department of Public Safety and Community Standards has begun an investigation and will interview fraternity members, pledges and witnesses who come forward. They will collaborate with the Syracuse Police Department to determine the severity and potential criminality of the activities shown on video.
In an email statement provided to The NewsHouse on Thursday, Phi Kappa Psi Executive Director, Ronald K. Ransom II, said the fraternity’s national council will work closely with the university to investigate and identify responsible individuals.
“These acts are deeply offensive and violate both fraternity policy and the fundamental dignity of individuals,” Ransom said. “Hazing has no place in Phi Kappa Psi or in society, and we remain committed to eradicating it from our organization.”
It is not the first time Phi Kappa Psi has found itself embroiled in controversy. In 2021, the fraternity was the site of protests following allegations of sexual assault against their members. Until May 2024, Phi Kappa Psi was also under disciplinary and social probation stemming from previous violations of the Code of Student Conduct and a prior university investigation.