I am writing to you about the tragic death of Joseph Upshaw that took place at the Delta Tau Delta house at Ohio State on the morning of April 21. As a student, I was a Delta Gamma at Wittenberg University, and as an alumnae, served on its house corporation board for over 10 years. I am the mother of two children, a daughter who was a Delta Gamma at OSU and a son who was a Phi Delt at the University of Montana. I am also the daughter of an OSU and Phi Delt alum who, along with my mother, have been continuing benefactors of what they consider a great university. More importantly, I am – was, Joey Upshaw’s aunt. I want to keep this brief and to the point. However, I ask that you indulge me momentarily as I reflect back to what our colleges were like before students of the 1960s, like myself, began a vehement and unrelenting crusade to bring about an atmosphere of permissiveness to our campuses.  At Wittenberg in 1964, we had curfews. By 10 p.m. on weeknights and 1 a.m. on weekends, we were tucked safely into our dorms and greek houses. There were no co-educational dorms or even co-educational room visitation. We were required to wear skirts to class and attend chapel. Sororities and fraternities had daily sit-down meals as a group and housemothers who kept a watchful eye, and we loved them. We drank pitchers of legal 3.2 beer at the local bars, celebrating with scotch and water when we turned 21. We didn’t sneak alcohol into university or greek housing. We didn’t have lock-downs. We were rowdy, broke rules and constantly tested the limits of authority. But there was structure, boundaries and vigilant adults to keep us safe. Had I been a student under the permissive atmosphere that prevails on campuses today, I am certain, absolutely certain, there is nothing I wouldn’t have tried. I am now more than ever before infinitely grateful to the parents of my generation who, in great wisdom, gave us college campuses compatible with the maturity level of young adults on the threshold of their first independent experience.  Joey’s death is an isolated event. I believe that is how Delta Tau Delta characterized it to the media.  When there is a shadow of legal culpability lingering, it is understandable that fraternity and university officials would concentrate on political posturing and sidestep what’s really important here – the fact that the events leading up to Joey’s death are not isolated events.  This is about alcohol and drugs, and it is my family’s hope that your attention will focus on what this chapter of Delta Tau Delta can do now to turn this terrible tragedy into a positive and leading movement of change on the OSU campus and within the greek community. Closing fraternities and sororities and other decisive disciplinary action when incidents like this occur project a tough, hard-line approach to drugs and alcohol. But they circumvent the problem and do not promote an ongoing and continuous movement of positive change. My family asks that Joey’s fraternity brothers, hopefully in conjunction with Delta Gamma, use this tragedy as the impetus needed to challenge them to take a leadership role. Implementing an ongoing fraternity program that would engage every pledge and active as a required participant each year in internal, campus and community substance abuse education and counseling would place these highly respected and popular young men in just such a leadership position. My family and I are hopeful that Joey’s death will not be an ending, but rather the beginning of something very positive and hopeful for the young men at Delta Tau Delta and all students at OSU – a great challenge. We would be grateful if you share with us how Joey’s brothers meet this challenge.
This column was provided by Mr. and Mrs. Gary Woodley and Mr. and Mrs. Ralph Woodley, the family of Joseph Evan Upshaw.