Fraternity in Bad Standing at UNH Suspended for Five Years

A University of New Hampshire fraternity is in bad standing with the college and their activity has been suspended for five academic years.

Durham's Town Administrator Todd Selig shared the news with the community in his Friday Updates last week, saying the fraternity was unrecognized and that the suspension is a minimum one, meaning the group will be allowed to resume their activities only if they uphold their sanctions.

"The Town appreciates UNH's firm stance in addressing problematic behavior within the Greek system," Selig wrote.

Selig did not describe what led up to the decision. He said the organization has been in bad standing since May 17.

UNH Spokesperson Erika Mantz could not be immediately reached for comment on Tuesday.

Kappa Sigma was thrown into the spotlight in 2020 when a Manchester woman presented police with a drug test that showed she had benzodiazepines (Xanax) in her system after a social at the fraternity house located on Strafford Avenue. 

The woman who made that claim was arrested for filing a false report to law enforcement after she recanted her story and admitted she had forged the documents. She entered into a diversion agreement to resolve the charge.

According to a report from The New Hampshire, the college's newspaper, fraternity members appeared before the University of New Hampshire’s Interfraternity Council and the organization was suspended for the rest of the calendar year and from having socials in 2021.

Kappa Sigma is the largest college social fraternity in the world with more than 200,000 living members, including over 16,000 undergraduates and 299 chapters and colonies located throughout the United States and Canada, according to leaders at the organization's national headquarters.

A message was left on Tuesday afternoon at national headquarters.

Contact Managing News Editor Kimberley Haas at Kimberley.Haas@townsquaremedia.com.