Sigma Pi copes with temporary off-campus living

Members of Sigma Pi said they hoped not much would change when they lost their house this fall, and though rumors spread as uncertainty grew, the fraternity said it is experiencing only minor setbacks.

“This isn’t the worst thing that could happen,” Sigma Pi President Kyle Drennan said. “We’re going to move forward.”

Sigma Pi was unable to move back into their house this fall because of disagreements with alumni over housing contracts, Drennan said.

“Our housing contracts hadn’t been updated in a while so we had conference calls this summer to deal with that,” Drennan said. “There were a lot of people involved, and it took too long to get done.”

These disagreements have spurred the creation of rumors about why Sigma Pi no longer has a house.

Junior Andy Price, a member of Sigma Pi, described the rumors as exaggerated hearsay about alcohol and partying. 

“People see that we aren’t in a house and a lot of stories get out there,” Drennan said, “It really is not as big a deal as it was made out to be.”

Without a house, fall rush became the fraternity’s most pressing challenge, Drennan said. Because of difficulties, Sigma Pi has now decided to postpone their rush for this semester and attempt recruitment in the spring. 

“We spoke to people that were interested in the fraternity, but ended up telling them to wait for spring rush,” Drennan said. 

More than 40 Sigma Pi members are currently living near 10th Street and College Avenue in attempts to rebound from their loss, Price said.

“We moved our guys there because a lot of parents showed concern about living arrangements,” Drennan said.

Members of Sigma Pi said they have spent a majority of their first months on campus in the dark, not knowing what was going to happen with the chapter’s housing in the future.

“As an incoming pledge, I literally didn’t know what was going on,” sophomore John Poracky said. “I didn’t know where I was going to live and whether or not I was going to be initiated.”

After lengthy meetings with alumni, all agreements are nearly finalized. Sigma Pi plans to move back into their house on Jordan Avenue in fall 2010, Drennan said.

For this year, Sigma Pi will remain completely active on campus, assuming a role more like the other off-campus fraternities at IU. Members remain optimistic that everything will go back to normal.

“We won Most Improved Chapter last year,” Price said. “We have gotten such great chapter reviews in the past. This should only be a small downfall for us.”