In compliance with Pennsylvania’s recently-passed Act 80 of 2018, also known as the Timothy J. Piazza Anti-Hazing law, Drexel University released a report detailing all hazing investigations and violations that occurred between January 2014 and January 2019. The report included six known incidents from fraternities, sororities and academic fraternities.

The first incident mentioned in the report occurred November 2016 during an academic fraternity’s “new member education program.”

“During the … program, prohibited behaviors included degrading or humiliating games or activities, line-ups and/or berating, and sleep and/or food deprivation”, according to the report.

An investigation into the incident concluded the fraternity had violated university prohibitions on hazing and were sanctioned with a two year deferred suspension, in addition to bystander intervention education and a new member education review.

In the next month, a sorority and two of its officers were under investigation for similar prohibited behaviors in its new member education process, including degrading games/performances. The sorority and two officers were found in violation of Drexel’s anti-hazing policies. The sorority received a five year suspension of recognition, while the officers received permanent deferred suspension and had to write reflection papers.

There were four other incidents involving greek organization new member programs detailed in the report.

“A report was made that new members were seeking out free condoms to add to kits that were kept by brothers of the organization,” according to the report of a fraternity in fall 2017.

After an investigation, the university found that all members of the fraternity kept these kits and was therefore not a violation of hazing policies since the new members were not treated differently.

The most recent incident listed in the report was from the fall 2018 new member induction. In this incident, it was described that a new member had to be transported to a hospital due to intoxication. An investigation revealed the members of the fraternity encouraged new members to attend the event at a different group’s house and consume alcohol.

“Alcohol education for all members, fine, 2 year deferred suspension of recognition, 1 year social suspension, 1 year loss of recruitment privileges, audit and review of the new member education process,and implementing two educational programs for the greek community related to alcohol and hazing,” the report stated, listing the sanctions for the fraternity.

In addition to the initial report, Act 80 requires Drexel and other Pennsylvania schools and institutions to publicly report all hazing incidents moving forward. The new law also outlines stricter punishments for hazing, defines additional types of hazing and will hold both individuals and organizations responsible for hazing violations.

The Office of Student Life has also made changes to student code of conduct to reflect the new regulations in Act 80. These changes include revisions to the Responsible Dragon Amnesty Policy, alcohol policy, hazing policy, posting policy and the student organization conduct policy. An email detailing the updates was sent to students Thursday morning.

Raymond G. Perelman, Philadelphia business magnate and philanthropist has passed away at the age of 101. Perelman was best known at Drexel for his donations toward the construction of the 32nd street plaza between Market and Chestnut streets, known as Raymond G. Perelman plaza, and the Raymond G. Perelman Center for Jewish Life.

“I am deeply saddened by the news that Raymond G. Perelman, a great friend to Drexel and benefactor to many Philadelphia causes, passed away on Monday. His legacy of extraordinary generosity stands as an inspiration to all of us,” President Fry stated in a letter to DrexelNow.

Perelman made his fortune buying and selling manufacturing businesses during a time where industry in the U.S. was in decline. Perelman also donated a sizable fortune to schools, cultural institutions and Jewish organizations across the Greater Philadelphia area.

“Looking beyond our campus, we know the enormous good Mr. Perelman and his late wife, Ruth, did for people, organizations and communities across our region literally changed the landscape of Philadelphia. Their support for academic medicine, the arts and the region’s cultural life will be an enduring legacy,” Fry added in his letter.

Perelman made a significant mark on the city of Philadelphia and will be missed by many across the region.

“For us at Drexel, and for so many people across our region, Raymond Perelman’s memory will always remain a blessing,”Fry concluded.

The Dec. 1 Drexel men’s basketball game had a few high-profile spectators. Model and reality TV star Kendall Jenner was in the stands with Sixers all-star Ben Simmons, according to a tweet from the Drexel Men’s Basketball Twitter account. The two allegedly attended the game on a date.

Another Sixers player, TJ McConnell, was also in attendance, though not pictured with Jenner and Simmons. McConnell was reportedly at the game in support of his brother Matty, who was playing for the Dragons’ rival Robert Morris University.

It didn’t take long for both students and Dragons TV to notice the celebrities at the game. Senior psychology major Anna Savage and her friend made a last-minute decision to go to the game and said she saw the pair after half-time.

“We turned around and saw Ben Simmons and Kendall Jenner and freaked out for a second. They must’ve come in during half-time and we didn’t even notice.”

Savage even got the chance to speak to Jenner briefly when she asked if she could take a photo with her. Jenner told her she could whenever they were getting ready to leave.

As word spread around campus that Jenner and Simmons were at the game, Savage recounted that students began to flood the Daskalakis Athletics Center, but security stopped any additional students from going into the same section Jenner was in.

Just before the two left, Savage was able to get the photo she was promised.

“It was really cool seeing her because she is known by everyone and it was super nice of her to come over and take the picture. She didn’t have to answer us when we asked and she didn’t have to take the picture; she could have just walked out,” Savage said.

“I found it really cool just to see someone so famous act so normal in a situation.”

Although Jenner and Simmons might have had fun at the game, McConnell likely left disappointed that night: the Dragons beat Robert Morris 82-69.

Returning for its fourth year, Drexel University’s Welcome Week was once again a big hit with new students. Welcome Week, which replaced the summer new student orientation program in 2015, is full of activities geared towards preparing incoming students for success at Drexel.

This year’s Welcome Week highlights included Night on the Row, the Franklin Institute kick-off event, first bash carnival and various trips to locations around the city.

The Triangle spoke to several freshman students about their experience.

Every student had positive experiences to share, with the overwhelming favorite being the kick-off event at the Franklin Institute.

The event, hosted by Drexel to officially begin Welcome Week, gave new students the opportunity to mix and mingle with each other with music, dancing and the entirety of the Franklin Institute to explore. The whole building was rented for the night, giving attendees full reign over it.

Following the kick-off event, students returned to campus for the first bash carnival, which included laser tag and bubble soccer.

Some students, like freshmen Anthony Dimaio and Jacob Kopolovich, moved in earlier than most to attend a two-day class on material science. Dimaio noted that he thought it was a great idea to have students move in a week early to attend events before classes begin.

Another new student, Ellie Herman, said she had a great first week and is loving Drexel so far. She said that Welcome Week had so much going on it actually felt more like a whole month.

One freshman, who came to Drexel from Bangladesh, was happy with how welcoming and helpful everyone was towards him. One of his favorite events was Night on the Row, which he attended with some of his new friends. Although he’s not sure if he’s going to rush any fraternities at this point, he said he wanted to just go check it out.

Some new students said that although they thought Welcome Week was great, Drexel didn’t do as good of a job at feeding them. Meal plans for the term did not work for Welcome Week and students had to rely on meals provided at set times.

With Welcome Week concluded, the freshmen are now completing their first week of classes and getting ready for the rest of their first year.

The fitness center inside of Race Street Residences will be closing to make way for more study and living space. The fitness equipment was listed for sale by Drexel at GovDeals.com, a liquidation auction website used by Drexel to sell surplus materials and equipment.

The listing at GovDeals includes treadmills and weight equipment, and states that “Residence Halls need Study and Living space more than this Equipment room that was not used very often”.

Race Street Residences is the only Drexel residence hall with a recreation/fitness center inside of it.

Amanda Noll, a director in Campus Services, was able to provide a statement in an email to The Triangle.

“Drexel Student Life, University Housing and Athletics jointly reviewed the usage of the Race Street Residences’ gym, which has significantly declined since the 2010 opening of the Drexel Recreation Center and agreed to close the gym. The decision to close the Race Street Residences gym is supported by the robust programming and equipment offering at the Drexel Recreation Center, as well as frequent student feedback requesting more general-use student space on the residential campus.”

It is unclear at this time exactly what will take the place of the gym, but Noll said the best use of the space is being evaluated. The Triangle will update this story at www.thetriangle.org as we learn more.

The first phase of partial demolition and construction recently began on Lancaster Mews, the 3600 block of Lancaster Avenue. The block was home to several shops frequented by students, including Aloosh Hookah Bar and Lemongrass Thai restaurant. Many of those businesses moved to other locations.

The controversial plans for the block were first noticed in 2015, according to John Phillips, president of the Powelton Village Community Association, who responded to us in an email. A member of the PVCA noticed someone taking photos of the buildings, and the photographer revealed the developer at the time intended to fully demolish the block and replace it with luxury apartments.

With a looming demolition, the PVCA decided immediately to nominate the block for historic designation. The association hired an expert in historical research to help create the application. Drexel’s Office of Government and Community Relations supported the historical designation and was strongly in favor of keeping the buildings and retail in place. The association was successful in gaining the designation, but that did not dissuade the developer from continuing to pursue demolition.

The first compromise offered by the developers was to revise the plans to keep the facade of the structure in a preservation process known as a facadectomy. Facadectomy is the same technique used in the redevelopment of the Boyd Theater, and only spares a small fraction of the original structure. This plan also did not include the ground-level retail that had existed on the block.

After a lengthy process of pushback from the community, and several revisions to the plan, a final compromise was reached between the developer and the community. That compromise included allowing the developer to slice off the rear portion of the buildings to make way for new development while leaving the corner buildings on 36th and 37th streets, the fronts of the buildings, and parts of the interior intact.

The compromise also requires the developer to include the ground-level retail that existed before construction. While it’s not exactly what the community wanted, Phillips said he’s happy a compromise could be made.

“We agreed to the demolition of the rear of the buildings only in order to save first floor commercial use along Lancaster. While neither the developer nor the residents are completely happy, we are pleased that a compromise could be reached that met the communities goals of respect for the building and its history with good retail opportunities.”

Phillips also said he expects the retail spaces to be larger and more viable than the ones that previously existed. The developer, CA Ventures, told The Triangle there will be a total of five retail spaces in the new building.

It is unclear at this time, however, which of the original businesses will be moving back to their spaces after construction is completed. CA Ventures confirmed that Aloosh will be returning to the block, but the developer is currently only in discussions with other tenants.

With the current plan for the block approved, demolition and construction began this summer and is expected to be completed in the summer of 2019.

The new structure, which will be situated behind the existing structure, will include 126 student apartment units and will be four to five floors high, according to architectural drawings.

Drexel University’s chapter of Pi Lambda Phi will be moving into a new house at 3914 Spruce St. this fall, according to an article by the Daily Pennsylvanian. The house was formerly occupied by the University of Pennsylvania chapter of the same fraternity.

Drexel’s chapter of Pi Lambda Phi was only recently re-established in 2017, making it one of the newest fraternities on campus. Beta Chi Theta (BXO) and Beta Theta Pi, both recognized colonies, join Pi Lambda Phi as new to Drexel. Both chapters were founded in 2014. Neither Beta Chi Theta nor Beta Theta Pi have houses.

“Everyone is very excited, and it will certainly ensure that Brotherhood bonding happens as we work towards doing house repairs”, Ryan Philip, vice president of communications for the chapter, said in an email. “Our fraternity like many others on Drexel’s campus have been looking for a house since our re-founding about a year ago.”

Philip wrote that they were alerted to the availability of this property by Pi Lambda Phi headquarters.

The house became available when its former occupants, the University of Pennsylvania chapter of Pi Lambda Phi, were evicted by their own alumni association and national headquarters after years of financial struggles following renovations to the property to repair major damage from a fire.

According to the Daily Pennsylvanian, the University of Pennsylvania chapter still has a considerable amount of debt that stems from a variety of issues.

The house at 3914 Spruce St. sits in between two other University of Pennsylvania fraternities, Pi Kappa Epsilon and Sigma Alpha Epsilon. Unlike other fraternity houses at Drexel, this one will not be managed by the university. It instead will be managed by the alumni association of the University of Pennsylvania chapter of Pi Lambda Phi.

“It will not be managed by either university”, Philip said. “It is however being managed by the alumni association of the UPenn Chapter of Pilam”.

When asked about oversight of the house, Todd Sullivan, director of fraternity and sorority life at Drexel, told The Triangle in an email that they are communicating with the University of Pennsylvania.

“Drexel provides oversight for properties that it owns”, Sullivan said. “We are in communication with our colleagues at UPenn to support a safe and healthy living environment for all students.”

This new arrangement will make Pi Lambda Phi the 15th recognized fraternity at Drexel with a house. The fraternity does not think the distance from campus will be an issue for them.

Despite the excitement surrounding the new house, the Daily Pennsylvanian noted that the arrangement will be reevaluated after three years, and the University of Pennsylvania chapter may take back the house if finances allow for it. Todd Sullivan did not say if there were any plans in place to house the chapter after the end of the arrangement.

Ryan Philip confirmed that this is only a temporary move, and there is no housing lined up for the chapter after the three years. However, they will continue to search for housing closer to campus in the meantime.

A previous establishment of Pi Lambda Phi at Drexel owned a house at 3425 Race St, now the Drexel Smart House. That house was mostly destroyed in a supposed arson incident in the late 1990s, which eventually led to the ejection of the chapter from Drexel.

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