After a student’s death on a Florida campus, the mother of a former Mizzou student is challenging universities to take a closer look at Greek life and alcohol use.
On Monday, Florida State University announced a ban on fraternities and sororities after a student’s death over the weekend. That student, 20-year old Andrew Coffey, was a Pi Kappa Phi pledge. He was found unresponsive after a house party off campus, and later died.
“I applaud them for what they’ve done by indefinitely shutting [the Greek houses] all down,” said Lynn Zingale, whose son was hospitalized after an alleged hazing incident at a Mizzou fraternity in 2016. “But they are still allowing [members] to live in the houses which is still very dangerous, and they waited for a death.”
Zingale hopes the death at FSU is the last of its kind.
“I encourage every parent who’s out there who has gone through a similar incident of hazing, to speak up. Because we will all tell you the same story and what it’s like dealing with the universities and the national fraternities,” she said. “There are coverups, they don’t want to give you information, and they are in massive damage control when these things happen.”
In a lawsuit filed against Kappa Alpha Order a few of its members at Mizzou, Zingale’s son Brandon said he was a pledge for the fraternity in 2016 when he was the victim of hazing. Zingale said he was forced to play a liquor chugging game until he passed out and was left unresponsive for hours. He was later hospitalized with a 0.41 blood alcohol level.
University officials later withdrew recognition of Kappa Alpha for five years, for violations of several university standards. The fraternity cannot participate in campus activities and cannot recruit on campus. A spokesman said that was the harshest punishment the university could deliver.
In October, Mizzou released a report that reviewed the MU Greek System and Office of Greek Life (OGL). The review, conducted Dyad Strategies in early August this year, found some troubling trends with alcohol and substance abuse in fraternities as well as a lack of communication and leadership between chapters and OGL.
In a letter to the MU community, the Interim Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs and Vice Chancellor for Operations, Gary L. Ward, called the report a “first step” toward a goal of making Mizzou’s Greek system the best in the country.
Ward said the team behind the study will meet with the university, alumni, faculty and staff to review the report and recommendations.
“I’m very grateful for the work of Dyad Strategies and this report; it is providing us a thorough review of our Greek system. We will be reviewing the report and recommendations very carefully to determine our next steps. Throughout its history, the Greek system at Mizzou has impacted the community and the lives of thousands of students, giving them invaluable leadership and service experiences. This report was a first step, and we look forward to building the future of the Greek system while keeping in mind that campus safety is our top priority,” Ward said in a press release.
Zingale said she wasn't surprised by the report’s findings. She hopes her family’s story, and the stories of other hazing incidents, will keep the issue in the spotlight and inspire change.
