The University of Arizona has placed all 21 of its Interfraternity Council chapters on an interim activities suspension as school officials confront a growing number of misconduct allegations involving hazing, physical assault, drugs, alcohol, and student safety. According to Arizona’s Family, Dean of Students Chrissy Lieberman, reports of misconduct now involve nearly half of the university’s fraternity chapters, with some cases also facing criminal investigation.
The Arizona fraternities suspension sharply limits what chapters can do while university officials address the ongoing cases. In a statement published by Scripps News Group, Lieberman wrote, “Effective immediately, I am putting all IFC chapters on Interim Activities Suspension until all IFC chapter advisors have met with me in a mandatory advisors’ meeting. Activities Suspension prohibits hosting, attending, participating in, and sponsoring any organizational activities. Club business meetings are the only allowed activities during this suspension.”
The blanket restriction does not mean every fraternity has been accused of misconduct. According to Arizona’s Family, chapters that were in good standing before the order can return to good standing after a chapter adviser attends one of three mandatory meetings with Lieberman. Meetings were scheduled for October 6, October 7, and October 12. The university also plans to require advisers to attend quarterly meetings going forward.
The decision comes after university administrators had already warned fraternity leaders about behavior on campus. Arizona’s Family reports that University of Arizona President Suresh Garimella met with fraternity presidents on Aug. 27 and made clear that the school would not tolerate additional violations that endangered students. University leadership also called on fraternity leaders to hold members accountable and work with their national organizations to address conduct problems.
Despite that warning, Lieberman said reports continued coming from students, parents and members of the community. According to the same Arizona’s Family report, the Dean of Students Office said it had reached capacity for the number of organizational cases staff could investigate at one time, and every organizational case currently occupying that capacity involved an IFC fraternity chapter. The university said it would continue working with the University of Arizona Police Department on investigations.
One of the allegations drawing significant attention involves Sigma Tau Gamma. A September 2 notification letter from the University of Arizona Dean of Students Office placed the fraternity on activities suspension while an investigation proceeds. The official letter alleges that during the fall 2025 semester, “new members were forced to consume large quantities of alcohol and live goldfish.” University officials also alleged that new members experienced screaming, degradation, and threats from active members.
The Sigma Tau Gamma allegations remain under investigation, and the suspension notice is not a final disciplinary finding. According to the university’s letter, the chapter was prohibited from organizational activities, recruitment, and new member activities while the case moves through the student conduct process. The university identified potential violations involving endangering behavior, alcohol, hazing, off-campus conduct, other university rules, and state or federal law.
The broader Arizona fraternities controversy extends beyond that single chapter. The university’s current Chapter Conduct and Judicial Status page lists Delta Chi, Delta Kappa Epsilon, Sigma Tau Gamma, Zeta Beta Tau and Zeta Psi under active judicial investigations. The university page separately lists Kappa Alpha Order, Phi Delta Theta, Sigma Chi, Sigma Phi Epsilon and Zeta Beta Tau among fraternities currently completing sanctions following earlier investigations.
Those sanctions vary by chapter. According to the University of Arizona, Kappa Alpha Order and Phi Delta Theta are on university probation through May 2027, while Sigma Phi Epsilon is also on probation through May 2027 and has additional requirements that include a hazing prevention workshop, membership review, and meetings with its national headquarters. Sigma Chi is operating under a headquarters revitalization plan, while Zeta Beta Tau has university-imposed requirements tied to a previous conduct case.
The university has also formalized how it publicly reports hazing cases. Its Campus Hazing Transparency Report, maintained in accordance with the federal Stop Campus Hazing Act, identifies organizations found responsible for hazing violations and documents key dates, conduct findings, and sanctions. The report is updated twice a year and currently includes several fraternity cases from the 2025 and 2026 academic year.
Under the university’s active hazing policy, disciplinary consequences can be significant when an investigation results in a finding of responsibility. Students can face sanctions ranging from warnings and probation to suspension, expulsion, or degree revocation. Organizations can lose university privileges or recognition, and cases involving alleged criminal conduct that creates a substantial safety risk can be reported to law enforcement.
For now, the Arizona fraternities suspension represents a campuswide intervention rather than a final judgment against all 21 chapters. Chapters that were already in good standing have a path to resume normal operations after satisfying the adviser meeting requirement, while fraternities facing separate investigations or sanctions remain subject to the restrictions attached to their individual cases. The larger question for the University of Arizona is whether its latest action can stop the misconduct reports that continued even after fraternity leaders were warned to change course.
