March 4, 2021
We want to create an environment that allows every student at Duke to feel that they are fully engaged in campus life, balancing our need to foster an inclusive community with our desire to give students a chance to affiliate with close friends. The change of rush from spring of freshman year to fall of sophomore year will give all students equal opportunity to join the selective living group of their choice, or to have an equally vibrant housing experience in our residential community.
Greek life can and should be a vital component of that environment, on Duke’s campus, and I want to make very clear that it has never been our intention to eliminate Greek Life at Duke. In fact, our hope is to provide additional support to Greek life organizations—and to all selective living and campus groups—by making our housing system equitable and inclusive for all students.
It’s counterproductive to these goals for fraternities to disaffiliate from Duke and create their own housing in Durham. It doesn’t serve their purposes—and in fact will make it more difficult for them to recruit and to engage with the broader student community—and it undermines our efforts to foster a vibrant campus community and strong relationships with our neighbors in Durham. Moreover, the Duke Community Standard will always apply to all undergraduate students, whether they live on- or off-campus.