Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity chapter banned after allegations of hazing, racism

Chapman’s chapter of SAE was officially closed May 18, 2022 and will have no further presence at the university. Illustration by WYATT LINCOLN, illustrator.

Chapman University’s chapter of the Sigma Alpha Epsilon (SAE) fraternity — an organization that has long been viewed with criticism and controversy on campus — has been permanently eliminated from the university.

Dean of Students Jerry Price announced the fraternity will have no further presence at Chapman last May, just after finals week when The Panther had already wrapped up publication for the semester.

“The University recently received allegations with supporting documentation of hazing and racist behavior by current and past members of the Sigma Alpha Epsilon (SAE) fraternity at Chapman,” Price wrote. “Upon receiving the information, we suspended the organization pending an investigation, initiated an investigation into the allegations, and engaged in communication with the Sigma Alpha Epsilon national office to address these concerns.”

Price wrote that the evidence presented to the university contained behavior that went against Chapman’s community values and standards. The SAE national office also received the allegations and performed an expedited review. 

Based on their investigation, the SAE national office informed Chapman’s members that their chapter was closed and they would have no further presence at Chapman as of May 18, 2022. 

On May 4 — exactly two weeks before SAE was banned from campus — The Panther received an anonymous email from someone claiming to be a former new member of SAE at Chapman.

“The members of SAE at Chapman have been involved in various illegal activities — primarily hazing — which is strictly prohibited by both the national organization and Chapman University’s Health and Safety policy,” the email reads. “As a former new member of this chapter, I am coming forward to report such abuses by the members and the complicit nature of the entire chapter in hazing.” 

The email described alleged hazing activities and included multiple videos depicting men eating from jars of mayonnaise — one participant in the video throws up in a trash bag — planking, walking around blindfolded and kneeling while reciting a chant.

“At first, I was really excited about being an SAE but it seems like this isn’t what I signed up for,” the anonymous email reads. “The national website advertises a 96-hour initiation process and unfortunately, the Chapman chapter forces new members through an 8 week pledge process. Overall, this has been a very negative experience with SAE for me.”

In one of the videos, while shirtless men are planking, a voice is heard in the background saying, “This is bringing back memories.”

The email also described allegations of racism among SAE members.

“Whether it be mocking George Floyd’s death or shouting racial slurs, Chapman SAE really does it all,” the email reads. “It is extremely concerning to have this chapter present at our Chapman campus since the university has been subject to accusations of racism in the past.” 

The student did not feel comfortable sharing his identity out of fear of retaliation from other fraternity members.

“Multiple members of the chapter have given me death threats if I were to release the evidence to authorities,” the student wrote.

Despite the threats, the student wrote he would be reporting the incidents to law enforcement.

Multiple members of Chapman’s SAE chapter — including members of the executive board — declined to speak with The Panther.

The newest developments in SAE’s history at Chapman come after years of controversy and criticism.

In 2014, the fraternity underwent a four-year suspension after an undisclosed ruling by Student Conduct. The chapter returned to campus in 2019. 

The Panther received a letter Nov. 12, 2020 that contained a sexually explicit alleged fraternity chant, claiming to be connected with the SAE chapter at Chapman. Photo from The Panther Archives.

In 2020, The Panther received an anonymous letter including what appeared to be a sexually explicit SAE fraternity chant conveying indecent behavior toward a virgin female’s bodily autonomy.

“She was a virgin in her freshman year / She was a virgin with her conscious clear / She never smoked nor drank nor even pet / She was the sweetheart of the campus you can bet,” the chant reads. “Until she met up with an SAE / And then she lost her damn virginity / She did it once, twice ooooh it felt so nice / With an SAE / Roll over baby … it’s better on the other side!!!”

A previous president of Chapman SAE’s chapter had told The Panther in a November 2020 interview the messages were not connected to the fraternity.

At large, SAE has been coined the “Sexual Assault Expected” fraternity — a parody of the organization’s Greek letters. As demonstrated by “The Hunting Ground,” a 2015 documentary on rape crimes at U.S. colleges and universities, SAE was referenced as one of the most predatorial fraternities among claims of female sexual assault and rape cases.

SAE was also dubbed the “deadliest fraternity” by Bloomberg in 2013. There have been at least nine reported deaths related to SAE nationwide since 2006, according to the Bloomberg investigation.

On SAE Chapman’s Instagram page — which has not been deleted but has been inactive since April 5 — some comments on the latest post mourn the chapter’s loss.

“Gone but never forgotten,” one comment reads. “It was a good run.”