Phi Kappa Theta Alcohol Education Form

If you are a new President or Risk Manager, we hope that you are reading this information long before the certification forms are due, and that your predecessors have passed as much of the required material on to you so that preparing the form will be an easy job. Please be sure to send next year's officers to this web site during the officer transition process so that they will have plenty of time to prepare for this process.

Background

At Phi Kappa Theta's 1999 Biennial Convention, there was considerable pressure for the fraternity to implement a nationwide ban on alcohol possession and consumption in all chapter housing. Several high-profile incidents at other fraternities and the resulting legal entanglements coupled with dramatic increases in the cost of liability insurance had made this appear to be necessary. However, a group of undergraduates worked out an alternative proposal involving a series of educational requirements and procedures to evaluate compliance with these requirements on an annual basis. Chapters which met the requirements and demonstrated responsible risk management policies would not be required to eliminate all alcohol from the premises. Chapters which failed the certification process would have to eliminate all alcohol from chapter housing, including private rooms, until compliance had been certified.

The Legislation

The alternate proposal was accepted, and the 1999 Convention added the following section to the National By-Laws:

ARTICLE VI. ACTIVE CHAPTERS
SECTION 9. d) 13)

iii) Effective August 1, 2000, Possession and consumption of alcoholic beverages shall be prohibited in any areas of chapter housing lest the chapter meets the following guidelines:

All newly initiated members are educated through a program approved by the Undergraduate Advisory Committee on the responsible consumption and service of alcohol as well as the consequences of its use.

The President, Vice President, Associate Member Trainer, Social Chair, and Risk Manager or equivalent have been educated through a program approved by the Undergraduate Advisory Committee on the responsible consumption and service of alcohol as well as the consequences of its use within the previous year.

The President, Social Chair, and Risk Manager or equivalent have been educated through a program approved by the Undergraduate Advisory Committee on the legal liability of alcohol consumption.

1/3 of active members have been educated through a program approved by the Undergraduate Advisory Committee on the responsible consumption and service of alcohol as well as the consequences of its use within the previous year.

1/10 of active members have been properly trained and certified in first aid and CPR administration within the previous year.

Implementation

This is legislation proposed and passed by undergraduates, and the implementation of the legislation and the evaluation of each chapter's compliance is the responsibility of the undergraduate members of the Undergraduate Advisory Committee (UGAC).

Throughout each academic year, the President and Risk Manager are required to gather documentation on the chapter's compliance with the above By-Law. At the end of the year, this documentation is forwarded to the UGAC representatives, who then certify which chapters are in compliance, and which are not. Chapters found not in compliance are required to remove all alcohol from chapter premises, including private rooms, until all of the requirements have been met and certification has been received from the UGAC.

The Educational Programs

There are three different programs which are required by this By-Law:

1. Responsible consumption and service of alcohol as well as the consequences of its use

The most common version of this program is called "TIPS" training. Newer programs are being developed. The UGAC will accept most programs sponsored by your University's Student Life office. You are required to obtain a short description of the program signed by the presenter, giving the date that the program was offered, the length of the program, and if possible, a list of your members who attended on that date. If a sign-in sheet is not available, the UGAC will accept an individual signature by each attendee, indicating the date that he participated in the program.

All newly initiated members of each chapter are required to complete this program. It should be part of the Associate Member Education program, if possible during the first weeks of the program. The By-Law requires that you certify that all newly initiated members have completed this program within the past year.

Some brothers will have to take this program more than once. The By-Law lists five officers who must have taken the program within the past year. Except for newly initiated brothers, each of these officers is required to repeat the program in order to be able to sign on the certification form that he has completed the course within the past year. Also, in addition to the requirement that your newly initiated brothers all complete this program, the By-Law requires that one-third of all active brothers must have taken the program within the past year. To meet this requirement, and to make it easy for brothers who wish to run for one of the five offices affected by the By-Law, we suggest that as many active brothers as possible attend the program together with the Associate Member class. This is a good chapter experience, and will help you easily meet and even exceed the one-third requirement. Having an extremely high participation in this program could be a tie-breaker on your Founders Cup application. Also note that if a sophomore initiate took the program more than a year ago, for example as part of his freshman orientation, or before leaving campus for a co-op work term, he will have to repeat the program in order to be able to certify that he has taken the program within the past year.

2. Legal liability of alcohol consumption

While TIPS training mentions legal liability, your President, Social Chair, and Risk Manager are required to obtain additional in-depth training on legal liability. As with the previous training, most programs offered by your university specifically covering legal liability will be accepted. The same requirement to submit a brief description of the program signed by the presenter with the date of the program also applies. While the By-Law does not explicitly state that this program must have been completed within the previous year, we suggest that these officers need to be aware of recent legal developments, incidents, and court decisions, and should take this responsibility seriously enough to repeat the training.

Another good place to get this training may be your province leadership conference. Talk to your Province President and your province's UGAC representative about the schedule and agenda for your PLC to see if a course on legal liability is being offered.

3. First Aid and CPR administration

Any program which provides a CPR certificate is acceptable. This includes courses specifically on CPR as well as Senior Lifesaving courses, if a CPR certificate is issued. We do not require a statement from the presenter for this training, however, copies of both sides of the individual CPR certificates from 1/10th of your active members are required.

Deadlines

Currently (for 2005-6 certification, describing the 2004-5 academic year), the certification form is due by August 1st, with certification to be announced around September 1st. For future years, we are considering moving the submission deadline back to April 15th, with certification announced by the beginning of the annual meeting (Convention or Leadership College).

The Certification Form

The next page in this web procedure will take you to a short form which will ask you a few questions about your chapter size. After completing that form, you'll be presented with a form for entering the names of your officers and the members who have taken the required courses. Once that form has been completed, you will be able to download and print a customized PDF file with blanks for signatures and dates, a list of required attachments, and the address to which to mail the materials.

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