We would like to begin by thanking Scott Zimmer for his Wespeak in last Friday’s Argus, in which he defended the value of fraternities on this campus. While we agree with his feelings that DKE (and Psi U) provide an enjoyable social atmosphere, we would like to point out that our organization and similar ones provide more than just social events for the Wesleyan and Middletown communities.
Our organization, the Xi of Psi Upsilon, preaches four virtues: personal responsibility, virtuous character, pursuit of wisdom, and service to others. These four principles are the values by which each of us strives to live. Every day, the Brothers of this house take on the personal responsibility to maintain the physical structure, administer events and work towards its future.
In the past few years, we have also continued our commitment to serving others. We work with the North End Activism Team’s mentoring group to host and participate in mini-olympics, Easter egg hunts, potluck dinners and talent shows. This past Christmas we worked with another mentoring program, NIA, to host dinner in our house for single mothers and their children living at a woman’s shelter, while our House President played Santa Claus. We volunteer at local soup kitchens, Christmas in April and canned food drives.
In addition to being active in the community, Psi U invites other students and student groups into our House. Each year, our House is used by the Wesleyan community as a venue for plays, concerts, and other performances, as well as for events held by Greek organizations that do not have a house of their own. Every weekday we open our doors and invite every member of the Wesleyan and Middletown communities to share a meal with us at the Chique Chaque dining club. We also use Chique Chaque to host events such as a dinner for the Middletown police department, firefighters, and city council, as well as a dinner at which we honor a professor with the Winchester Award for scholarship and talent in teaching.
Psi U Brothers are Head Residents and Resident Advisors, we are TA’s, we are both mentors and tutors for local Middletown children, we are ITS technicians, we are editors of the Argus, we are members of the SJB, we are on the Honor Board, we are from four different continents, and we are on the ultimate frisbee, crew, squash, track, cross country and baseball teams.
As the Argus pointed out last Friday, University President Doug Bennet says that here at Wesleyan “We work to free our students to make choices through their lives that will allow them to be effective leaders.” By denying Psi U program house status, the University has impaired our ability to make a choice which significantly impacts our college experience, as well as our ability and motivation to be leaders – the choice of where we live. Psi U provides a place where we can be housed with twenty of our closest friends, feel comfortable to be ourselves, and learn integral leadership skills by running our own House.
The Xi’s credo is “lifelong leadership for Wesleyan and society, far beyond our number.” By taking the first steps towards eliminating an autonomous Psi U from the Wesleyan campus, the administration is purging current and future undergraduates of a unique leadership opportunity. We ask to be allowed to live together and share in the governing of our House. For 160 years, these two privileges have helped shape our Brothers as contributing members of Wesleyan and society, far beyond our number. Unfortunately, the rejection of our Program Housing application will make all of this impossible.
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