A revision to UNM housing contracts will no longer give sororities and fraternities exemption for mid-year release.
Residents wanting to relocate to a sorority or fraternity house may still do so after the fall rush period, said Lauren Haggerty, Greek Life adviser, but spring “rushees” will have to wait to move in until the subsequent fall term.
“The exemption had been worked out a long time ago with the residence halls, but I think that housing is going through a lot of changes currently,” she said. “They are reevaluating a lot of the current programs and we understand that it was a change that had to happen.”
UNM Housing Director Patrick Call said he considers this a necessary change and a good business decision.
“I am new to the institution and looking at its business practices and how we have done some things and making some tweaks and changes here and there,” he said. “This was a practice that I ran onto that was pretty significant, and that’s why I engaged folks in conversation and we came to mutually agree that this was something we can do.”
Student Kira Hughes said she was released from her contract this spring to move into her sorority house, which is a crucial experience in sorority life.
“It was hard for me last semester living in the dorms because I lived in the dorms to be over at the house,” she said. “When you are able to move into the house it’s a lot easier. You feel a greater sense of community and I think especially for girls who go through recruitment in the spring it’s a lot harder to feel a part of it because it’s a lot smaller pledge class and there is not as many girls going through it with you.”
Sorority and fraternity houses will likely shift their housing policies to match UNM’s, Haggerty said.
“They will have to plan for their facilities for individuals to be living there for a full year,” she said. “Members will start to move in right away, and it will change the culture of the organizations that the older members are expected to stay through the spring semester, when traditionally some of the older members may have been able to move out their last semester.”
The modification should not affect the majority of the Greek system, Call said.
“The majority of students that ask for a Greek release ask for it right when school begins with the recruitment and fraternity and sorority rush,” he said. “That’s where the bulk of the students release from their contracts early on.”
Although housing wants to be supportive of Greek life, its own funding is the priority, Call said.
“For us, as a self-supporting auxiliary, all the funds that we have to spend are based on our student rents,” he said. “Even to lose 20 or 25 people in the spring is a financial hit to us.”
This change is in the best interest of housing residents as a whole, Call said, because it will mean fund stability.
“One of the things that you know we definitely have a need (for is) to continue to renovate our buildings,” he said. “We need every dime we can get to bring our halls into the best condition possible.”
The housing contract is very clear, Call said, and all students still attending UNM and living on campus are expected to abide by it.
“It’s a contract,” he said. “We are open and honest when they sign it up front. It outlines all these sorts of fees and different things and we tell people about the process so it’s not like we are hiding anything.”
Jon Gayer, Greek Life adviser, said that housing worked hard to come up with a compromise that worked for everyone and would have minimal impact on UNM’s Greek system.
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“It went through the proper channels, they worked with us,” he said. “I don’t think the change will hurt us. Our numbers are up in the Greek system and housing as well. If we were down in numbers it would be more of a problem.”
