President William “Brit” Kirwan stopped by the Beta Theta Pi fraternity house Monday night to address undergraduate and alumni concerns about where the greek system at Ohio State is heading.

“I am a great believer in the contribution that greeks can make to a university,” Kirwan said. “Having a strong greek system at such a large university is important.”

Kirwan said that while he was a student at the University of Kentucky, he was a member of the Delta Tau Delta fraternity, so he understands how beneficial being in the greek community can be.

After coming to OSU two years ago, Kirwan requested the setup of the Greek Life Task Force as a way to turn around the greek system’s falling numbers in past years.

The task force recently gave a report to Kirwan, outlining some new requirements, including community service and live-in chapter advisors to keep the greeks connected to the rest of the university community, faculty, staff and administration. There is also a requirement that all chapters must maintain a 2.4 grade point average to remain active on campus.

The task force, which includes two members of the Beta house, has been meeting to discuss the possibility of deferring fraternity rush until winter quarter. Kirwan said that statistics show freshmen who pledge in the fall quarter of their freshman year often get into academic trouble and cannot complete the pledging process because of poor grades.

According to Clayton Arrington, who works in the Office of Student Affairs and is also the live-in advisor at the Beta house, the report will be implemented on March 19.

Kirwan said that he believes that the purpose of the task force is to help build the greek system into a strong and vibrant community. He also said that he sees the Betas as a model for the greek system, because their chapter already has grade requirements higher than the required 2.4 and the chapter already has a live-in advisor.

Kirwan also said the task force’s plan to increase the numbers in the greek system has moved as quickly as possible. The plan was slightly delayed because David Williams, former vice president of Student Affairs, resigned.

“We, as the greek community, strive to be the cream of the crop at the university and we will continue to contribute to Ohio State through academics and community service,” said Chris Ingram, president of Beta Theta Pi. “Our chapter felt very honored to have President Kirwan join us for dinner and discuss where the greek system is headed.”

Kirwan was invited to the Beta house as part of the chapter’s Athena Program. The program, set up by chapter advisor Harvey Minton, is a series of speakers who have been leaders in the community.