Penn State and State College Discourage Visits to Former Fraternity House Following Misconduct Allegations, Violations

Penn State and State College officials are warning students of “troubling” behavior from individuals living in a former fraternity house that has caused ‘deep and growing concern,’ according to a mass email sent Friday night.

The message concerned a rental property that formerly served as a chapter house for Sigma Alpha Mu fraternity, which was suspended in 2017 for multiple alcohol, health, and safety violations. Located at 329 E. Prospect Avenue, the house has continued to serve as a rental residence ever since Sigma Alpha Mu lost recognition as a student organization and had its charter revoked. Residents of the house have continued to represent themselves as a fraternity, according to the university.

Since April 2017, according to Penn State, residents at the property were accused of or found responsible for a number of offenses, including hazing and sexual misconduct. This semester, the university found residents repeatedly hosted large gatherings that violated the borough’s COVID-19 mitigation ordinance.

According to the email, State College police have already visited the property “at least ten times” this semester for various offenses.

State College is reportedly considering taking additional legal action. Penn State said it’s already suspended two students living there.

Over Halloween weekend, an underaged female Penn State student who attended a gathering at the house was found both intoxicated and unconscious on a nearby sidewalk. According to the email, residents are accused of placing her there in the early hours of Saturday, October 31.

The female student was transported to Mount Nittany Medical Center and treated for alcohol poisoning. She made a full recovery.

An unrelated allegation of sexual assault occurring at the property was also reported over that weekend.

“In short, residents at 329 East Prospect have demonstrated a pattern of behavior that is troubling and has not stopped despite the continuing efforts of local police and University authorities,” Vice President for Student Affairs Damon Sims and Borough Manager Tom Fountaine wrote in the email. “For that reason, we strongly discourage any student from affiliating with the unrecognized group living in this facility, and we urge you not to attend activities there.”

Sims and Fountaine said they have never before ‘issued a warning of this nature, which should indicate the seriousness of the alleged behaviors occurring at this property.’

Anyone with additional information regarding the allegations or concerns with the property and its residents are encouraged to contact the State College Police Department at 814-234-7150 or Penn State’s Office of Student Conduct at 814-863-0342.

The house is one of two that were the subject of litigation between the borough and property owners over whether fraternities that lose university recognition could continue to operate as a fraternity house.  

A state appeals court ruled in December 2019 that the borough could not stop the members of the former Sigma Alpha Mu from living there as a fraternity house because it was operating as a fraternity house before State College amended its zoning ordinance to specify fraternities must be recognized by Penn State.

StateCollege.com’s Geoff Rushton contributed to this report.