The following article contains mentions of sexual assault.
Boston University students gathered in Allston and at Marsh Chapel Saturday to protest and demand the removal of the fraternity Kappa Sigma Mu Psi as a Student Activities Office-affiliated organization following an alleged rise in allegations of sexual misconduct by its members and at its events.
The protest was organized by the College of Arts and Sciences Student Government and Campus Survivors, an organization established by BU students in May 2020 to provide a safe platform for survivors to tell their stories anonymously and raise awareness about college sexual misconduct.
It’s On Us Boston University, BU Mental Health Committee and 16K Strong also helped to organize the protest.
Protestors gathered outside of the Terrier Tailgate, a University-sponsored event hosted on Nickerson Field for Family and Friends weekend, before marching to the K Sig house in Allston.
The house was dark and the curtains were drawn shut for all of the protest.
Protestors brought out drum sticks and trash cans and began drumming while a report on the crowdsourced crime reporting app Citizen stated there was a break-in at the fraternity house, prompting the arrival of Boston Police Department officials, who allowed the protest to continue.
BU spokesperson Colin Riley said the University is aware that the protests took place and is looking into any evidence brought forward.
“We’re aware of [the protest] and looking into whatever evidence they’re presenting to the University,” he said.
Prisha Sujin Kumar, BU StuGov Senator and co-founder of Campus Survivors said she helped organize the protest to help raise awareness of the issue of sexual assault at Boston University.
Kumar noted the history of assault allegations related to the fraternity — which she said is part of what drove the protest.
“We’ve seen that they’ve had a culture of this dating back quite a while at this point,” Kumar said. “When we first started Campus Survivors, they were the first organization that we received any story from.”
Kappa Sigma lost University recognition in Feb. 2015 for circulating promotional material containing degrading images of women and glorifying sexual harassment.
The fraternity pledged to improve its behavior in Jan. 2021, releasing a statement promising to take accusations against members seriously and work with survivors.
But despite their stated commitments, CAS StuGov President and junior in CAS Evan Teplensky said it seems their actions have yet to change.
“This is a history of repeated offenses,” he said. “They apologized, admitting guilt, said they’re going to change and it’s … not happening fast enough.”
Nell Curtin, a Wheelock College of Education and Human Development senior, Gamma Phi Beta sorority member and Vice President of Leadership and Chapter Development of BU’s Panhellenic Council — a coalition governing the University’s ten sororities — said Panhel’s role, in this case, is to alert sorority members on the recent sexual assault allegations brought against Kappa Sigma.
“We mostly wanted to give all the information to the 10 sororities that we look out for,” Nel said. “We’re also facilitating talks between [the Interfraternity Council] and the Panhellenic presidents.”
The Panhellenic Council posted a message in support of survivors on their Instagram page Friday.
Aanika Akkaraju, a freshman in the College of Fine Arts, chanted at the Terrier Tailgate and outside of the Kappa Sigma house in Allston.
“I’m new, but I already know that there’s a sexual assault problem in BU,” they said. “I have a really loud voice and I’ve had a lot of experience going to protests. Even if I didn’t, it’s the right thing to do to support survivors and to make BU a safer place for everyone.”
Akkaraju said BU should shut down Kappa Sigma entirely.
“If a fraternity has a history of this, then enough is enough,” they said. “It needs to be shut down.”
CAS junior Mariana Villegas said she joined the protest due to her own experiences as a young female college student.
“I remember my first semester of freshman year, a ton of girls that I had just met literally gathered around in a circle and everyone was sharing their sexual assault story,” Villegas said. “Some talked about how they were raped too.”
Villegas said she believes BU is not doing enough to protect its students.
“This isn’t just some statistics,” Villegas said. “This is me, this is my friends, the people around me, men too.”
Sujin Kumar noted the ineffectiveness of BU’s mandatory online sexual assault training. Effective Sept. 2021, retraining of all new and returning students, faculty and staff became required.
“I have not met a single person who remembers what happens in the training,” Sujin Kumar said. “You can skip through the training without really understanding any of the information. It’s not really meant to educate.”
Curtin said fraternities and sororities on campus are actively working on increasing preventative measures such as having sober members present at off-campus events — a practice already present at sorority events — and holding additional sexual misconduct training sessions.
She added the Council asks that fraternities exclude brothers who have a history of engaging in behavior that puts others at risk from attending parties.
Teplensky said though the University appears to have a culture of protecting abusers on campus, the community wants to rectify it.
“I do think that there is a culture, but I think that the community wants it to change,” Teplensky said. “I think it’s the administration that is not allowing it.”
Kappa Sigma could not be reached for comment.
Nick Kolev, Standards Chair of the Board of Directors and previous Campus News Editor, is a member of Kappa Sigma. He was not involved in the editing of this story.
Victoria Bond, Secretary of the Board of Directors, is the president of the panhellenic council. They were not involved in the editing of this article.
Alessandra Kellermann of BU Parents United • Oct 26, 2021 at 10:44 am
As a sexual assault survivor, this always concerns me when still in 2021 we are struggling to get this right . This leads to feeling unsafe and with the lack of adequate counselors on campus and students not even being able to get through when they call for appointments – there seems to be a bigger issue of not prioritizing the wellbeing and safety of students on a huge campus. When I say safety, I mean emotional safety as well as physical. This affects the mental health of terriers who have not even been sexually assaulted, and is intertwined with academic performance. It’s time BU . It’s time to make the mental health and emotional and physical safety of all terriers a priority. It’s a win win when you do. Alumni have shared these issues have been ongoing and we are still in the midst of a pandemic where mental health issues are even more evident in all ages. Our parent group has sent emails and made calls since last year asking for a focus on mental health not just on paper, offering countless concrete ideas.
First, part of the daily COVID symptom check needs to include :
“ Are you sleeping okay? “ , “ Are you feeling down ?” , “ Are you feeling anxious?” ,
“ Do you feel SAFE? “, “ Do you feel supported ?”
“ Are you feeling alone or isolated?”
“ Would you like to speak to a counselor? “
“ Finally is there anyone else you know whom you are worried about being depressed or at risk of hurting themselves ?” ( reminding them it’s confidential) . This is part of prevention and intervening before things escalate for a student including grades dropping.
And when any red flags show up – have the resources and counselors available . HIRE MORE to help terriers struggling short or longterm. Invest in their wellbeing and safety. Zero tolerance for sexual assaults.
Ask the questions and don’t be afraid of the answers . Have a continuous campus wide campaign on mental fitness, wellbeing that allows all faculty and coaches to approach these topics reminding terriers they DO matter and there is help when they need it.
With the pandemic and even before, we know wellbeing and mental health are critical issues in Higher Ed. Have a hotline for terriers to call for themselves or others they are worried about staffed by licensed counselors 24/7. Every alumnus would invest in this as it only helps terriers succeed and feel even more supported as they follow their dreams here. Or use a little of the billions in endowment funds to hire more staff and man this hotline, have a wellness campaign with signage and workshops campus wide just as you did with COVID safety ,add art, entertainment and comedy to make it less uncomfortable and help terriers feel at ease talking or hearing about prioritizing their mental fitness and building resilience. Not every student has all the tools and coping skills needed when they begin their studies in college. Every therapist will remind you as I am, that their brains aren’t even fully developed until 25. And not every adult has every coping skill and toll available to succeed in life and self-care.
Be the shining example BU is in so many other areas including hockey, political science, music, and medical research, to name just a very few.
Bring in the therapy dogs and speakers in person – make it fun and inviting to talk about taking care of one’s mental health and you will see a huge change in the atmosphere on campus with those who are feeling lost and disillusioned and follow the JED foundation templates – you belong to that organization listed as a participant but that’s on paper.
We can’t afford to lose a student because this wasn’t worth the time or investment – every college is facing this challenge . Our BU can shine here and use creativity and terrier insight to make mental fitness, safety and self care appealing as they did with your monies with the “ F-CK IT WON’T CUT IT “ COVID safety campaign. But it can’t be on terrier shoulders – money is needed and licensed professionals.
No more near tragedies and fires – no more silence about them – transparency and support for all our terriers whether they come from donor and influential families or not please. Each terrier matters. Sexual assault and suicide happens everywhere , but it’s the action taken and concern shown by administration that makes the difference in postvention and prevention of any future tragedies. We all want BU to shine and applaud the terriers and faculty who advocate for a better day and a better way to handle these critical issues. These terriers are the leaders of tomorrow . These are the parents of the next generation and when they graduate from BU, let each terrier leave feeling their mental health and safety mattered, with the academic knowledge and the emotional skills to succeed in life and all its challenges. It takes courage to ask for help. And when a terrier picks up that phone to ask or indicates they need support, there can’t be silence anymore. There needs to be applause, encouragement and established support on campus.
Tracy McElhenie • Oct 25, 2021 at 1:10 pm
I believe when an Administration or Executive Office does not make a move to rectify the situation, something is amiss. The first thing to do is follow the relationships and ties between the university and the Fraternity and that means “Follow the Money.” Look for the exchange of money/donations – that being Kappa Sig as an entity, Bu Alumni/Kappa Sig members, or even companies owned or headed by a BU Alum/ Kappa Sig member.