Chancellor Kent Syverud on Thursday afternoon declined to comment on why he did not attend a Wednesday night meeting in Syracuse University’s Hendricks Chapel. That meeting, the second of two public forums on Wednesday, was organized after the suspension of the Theta Tau fraternity.

Attendees at the second Hendricks forum raised concerns about Syverud’s absence.

People continue to call Syverud to hear them, one student even saying the fact that he’s not here “despicable”

— Catherine Leffert (@ccleffert) April 19, 2018

Lashelle Ramirez said she should’ve transferred on her first day of school when she experienced racism. She reiterated, “Where’s Kent?” which prompted several shouts and whoops from the audience in agreement.

— Catherine Leffert (@ccleffert) April 19, 2018

“I’m not going to give an interview right now,” the chancellor said on Thursday, when approached by a Daily Orange reporter at a Shaw Quadrangle rededication ceremony in Eggers Hall.

The chancellor attended the ceremony on Thursday afternoon, but was not made available to answer questions. Jill Denny, executive assistant for engagement, said the ceremony was meant to focus on former SU Chancellor Kenneth “Buzz” Shaw.

The SU chapter of the Theta Tau fraternity was suspended Wednesday morning after the university confirmed it was involved in the creation of online videos showing fraternity members engaging in behaviors that were “extremely racist, anti-Semitic, homophobic, sexist, and hostile to people with disabilities,” Syverud said in a campus-wide email Wednesday.

The university refused to release the videos, but The D.O. posted a recording of one of the videos on its website Wednesday night.

Syverud spoke at a forum in Hendricks Chapel early Wednesday afternoon, which the university organized after his campus-wide email. At the forum, he said he watched “parts of the videos from Theta Tau” and was “deeply disturbed.”

But the chancellor did not attend the second forum held in Hendricks on Wednesday night. Hundreds of protesters gathered in front of Syverud’s house before the forum demanding SU to release the video.

SU has not responded to the release of the video as of 2:45 p.m. Thursday afternoon.

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MORE COVERAGE: 

• Syverud: SU will start ‘top to bottom’ review of all Greek life policies, activities and culture
• Student Association leaders call for SU Greek life audit in wake of Theta Tau suspension
• Students protest Theta Tau videos outside Chancellor Kent Syverud’s house
• Gallery: SU campus community reacts to Theta Tau videos

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Published on April 19, 2018 at 2:41 pm

Contact Jordan: [email protected] | @jordanmuller18