IUP will welcome the parents of a Penn State fraternity member whose death in 2017 has led to state reforms in Greek life at universities across the commonwealth.
Jim and Evelyn Piazza, whose son Timothy died after excessive drinking during a fraternity pledging event, will appear at Fisher Auditorium on Monday night at 7:30. The program is free and open to the community. It’s sponsored by IUP’s Interfraternity Council, Panhellenic Association, and the Office of Fraternity and Sorority Life.
The Piazzas have partnered with national Greek groups and with other parents of college students who have died in hazing incidents, including the parents of LSU freshman Max Gruver, Penn State Altoona freshman Marquise Braham, and Harrison, Kowiak, a freshman at Lenoir-Rhyne University in North Carolina, to form a coalition to strengthen anti-hazing laws and educate high school and college students about the dangers.
A new state law that arose out of the tragic death of Tim Piazza requires every college and university to post reports on hazing twice a year. The first report from IUP last month identified one incident in the just-completed fall semester, resulting in a “national temporary chapter restriction” placed on the Delta Gamma Epsilon Eta Chapter.
