Northwestern Emergency Information sent an email to Northwestern students Monday night detailing two reports filed with the Sexual Harassment Prevention Office regarding incidences of alleged sexual assault allegedly involving date-rape drugs at two NU fraternities.
On Feb. 2, the email said, the Office received a report that “four female students attending an event at the Sigma Alpha Epsilon (SAE) fraternity house in Evanston were possibly given a date-rape drug” on Jan. 21. Two of the students said they believed they were also sexually assaulted, the report stated.
A second report received on Feb. 3 alleged another sexual assault, with a possibility of date-rape drug use, occurred at an unnamed fraternity, according to the email.
The email stated that the Office is currently conducting an inquiry into the reports, and urges those who may have knowledge of the incidents to contact the University’s Title IX Coordinator or University Police.
The Sigma Alpha Epsilon headquarters has launched an investigation, and the Northwestern chapter "will be working with university administrators and chapter leaders to gain more information on the incident, and our staff member specifically assigned to Title IX matters will be working with our investigative team."
"Our Northwestern chapter of SAE is appalled and deeply concerned by the recent allegations of drug abuse and sexual assault," SAE chapter president Manos Proussaloglou said in a statement. "We take these allegations very seriously and are fully cooperating with the university’s investigation as well as the investigation spearheaded by our national headquarters. We are committed to ensuring that Northwestern remains a safe haven for everyone on this campus."
According to the national SAE website, "Sigma Alpha Epsilon seeks to prevent sexual misconduct, assault and rape on our campuses," and that, "as a fraternity, we reaffirm that sexual harassment, misconduct and assault of any person will not be tolerated by our members."
Additionally, the Panhellenic Association (PHA) released a statement "in support of survivors of sexual assault and drug-related violence," with allegations of sexual assault taken "very seriously" by the Panhellenic Association Executive Board and its members. "The safety of our community is a priority for us and it is our goal to improve sexual assault measures on this campus and in our community." The statement also said that every member of PHA completes training with SHAPE.
Vice President for Student Affairs Patricia Telles-Irvin sent an email out to the NU community on Tuesday afternoon saying, "Northwestern University condemns any such conduct in the strongest possible terms and expeditiously is investigating these charges. They go against Northwestern values and constitute grossly unacceptable behavior. The University is fully prepared to take appropriate action promptly."
Editor's note: This story was updated with additional information about SAE headquarters's investigation, Manos Proussaloglou's statement and a statement from PHA. These changes were made at 1:24 p.m. on Feb. 7.
This story was updated again to include a quote from Vice President for Student Affairs Patricia Telles-Irvin at 3:35 p.m.