University of New Hampshire fraternity suspended after party linked to 11 new COVID cases

Mary Rose Corkery

A fraternity at the University of New Hampshire was temporarily suspended after new COVID cases were connected to a party, according to the university.

The Theta Chi fraternity was placed on “interim suspension” following an Aug. 29 party connected to 11 new COVID-19 cases, according to a school statement. Both students and non-students attended the party, the New York Post reported.

“Let me be clear: this is reckless behavior and the kind of behavior that undermines our planning and will lead to us switching to a fully remote mode,” James Dean Jr., the university president, said in a statement.

“We have repeatedly asked all members of our community to practice and adhere to public health guidelines to reduce the spread of COVID (mask wearing, social distancing, no large gatherings, etc) and I’ve been pleased that the overwhelming majority of you are following these guidelines,” the statement continued.

More than 100 people went to the party, where masks were not worn, according to Dean’s statement. The school confirmed a cluster at the fraternity and the 11 new coronavirus cases included people from the University of New Hampshire, the statement said.

“The August 29 party is reprehensible and will not be tolerated. As soon as we heard of this party at Theta Chi, we started an investigation with the Interfraternity Council,” Dean said in the statement.

We will be pursuing student conduct charges against the organizers and all students who attended the event.”

“Theta Chi is under interim suspension immediately,  as will any fraternity/sorority or other student organization that behaves in a similar manner, while we conduct the investigation. Until the investigation is complete, there is a moratorium on any in-person gatherings of any size within these groups,” the university president added.

Colleges and universities across the country have taken precautions in order to prevent spreading the coronavirus.

At Penn State University, two fraternities were suspended for failing to obey virus restrictions, according to university press releases.

The Kappa Alpha fraternity’s recognition at Furman University was suspended for, at minimum, four years, according to a school statement. There were “unauthorized parties at their former fraternity house on August 21 and 22,” according to the statement.

At West Virginia University, 29 students were put “on immediate interim suspension” after reports of fraternity parties in early September and “additional sanctions are pending as investigations continue,” according to a school statement. The fraternities are not “recognized” by the university, according to the statement.

UNH spokeswoman Erika Mantz referred the Daily Caller News Foundation to Dean’s public statements.

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4 thoughts on “University of New Hampshire fraternity suspended after party linked to 11 new COVID cases

  1. Apparently UNH isn’t aware of the right to peaceably assemble – perhaps next time they should call it an antifa riot and everything would be fine.

  2. It’s called Herd Immunity. The more young people who get this, the better. That’s how we’ll protect the vulnerable. Remember, big pharma doesn’t want us to get herd immunity lest it interfere with their tax-payer funded new liability-free vaccine.

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