Less than two months after it placed the fraternity on temporary suspension, the University of Missouri has withdrawn Kappa Alpha�s recognition as a student organization for five years.

The decision is effective immediately and means the fraternity will not have access to certain university facilities or be able to participate in campus activities. Individual students will be able to attend classes.

�We expect all of our student organizations to uphold our values of respect, responsibility, discovery and excellence,� Cathy Scroggs, vice chancellor for Student Affairs, said in an MU news release. �We work hard with any organization that violates our policies to educate them on making better decisions. We have worked with this organization in the past, and I hope that they will take the necessary steps to improve in the future.�

Kappa Alpha was placed on a temporary suspension less than a week after a pledge was found unconscious Sept. 28 and was hospitalized after participating in a vodka-chugging contest. The fraternity had violated university and fraternity rules against hard alcohol and allowing a minor to consume alcohol in any form and already was on disciplinary probation after a previous incident where a pledge required medical treatment for intoxication.

The MU chapter also has been suspended by the national fraternity while it conducts an investigation.

Columbia police were sent to the fraternity, 1301 University Ave., the day after the incident for a report of an assault in which an 18-year-old house member drank to the point of needing emergency medical attention. The suspension was announced Oct. 3. Columbia Police Department Sgt. Bob Dochler said the case is under investigation.

Lynn Zingale, the mother of the 18-year-old student who had alcohol poisoning, said she was displeased with the five-year term and with how the university has handled the situation.

�It�s not nearly enough, and we feel like the school needs to be a little more forthcoming,� she said.

The MU release about the loss of recognition does not detail the violations the school determined Kappa Alpha to have committed, and Zingale said she called the university to learn the details.

�How are parents and/or students supposed to know what exactly went on there� if MU doesn�t release the list, she said.

Zingale said fraternity members forced her son to chug liquor.

�The school needs to be more concerned about their students instead of their reputation,� she said.

Her son has since recovered without any long-term effects and withdrew from classes at MU after Homecoming weekend.

MU spokesman Christian Basi, when told about Zingale�s statements, referred to part of Scroggs� statement that emphasized campus safety is the school�s top priority.

�The safety of our campus is our No. 1 priority; anytime that safety is compromised, we must take appropriate measures,� Scroggins said in the statement.

MU said Kappa Alpha was found responsible for multiple violations of the university�s standard of conduct. Basi said the violations included physical abuse; threatening or intimidating behaviors, written or verbal conduct; violations of rules governing use of alcohol and drugs; and hazing.

Jesse Lyons, assistant executive director for advancement for the fraternity�s national office and editor of The Kappa Alpha Journal, emailed a statement to the Tribune in which he said the fraternity�s headquarters is �disappointed at the ultimate decision by the university.� Lyons said the chapter and national organization were �prepared to educate our members on making better decisions, work with Mizzou as in the past, and take necessary steps to improve in the future.� The statement also noted Kappa Alpha �has a 125-year history with the University of Missouri.�

Allegations of hazing that led to the branch�s suspension were found to be false by a private investigator, Lyons said.

�However, our investigation did find unrelated previous risk management violations, including hazing and alcohol misuse, that must be addressed,� Lyons wrote. �Through our review and investigation, we identified a core group of men in our chapter with whom we could have moved forward. Our proposed sanctions included individual and chapter discipline, proven and intense culture change education for members, the separation of some chapter membership, enhanced alumni involvement, and ongoing progress monitoring.�

MU ordered Kappa Alpha to pay a $1,000 judicial processing fee. It had been the second fraternity at MU to be suspended this semester. The suspension came a few days after Delta Upsilon was temporarily suspended as MU investigates accusations that black students were harassed with racist and sexist slurs outside its house on Tiger Avenue.

Kappa Alpha�s national office still is imposing the temporary suspension that has been in place since early October, Lyons said. �This suspension will remain in effect until local alumni and national leaders can determine the best course of action for our members, the chapter, and the national organization.�

Basi said what happens as the five-year term ends depends on what the national organization wants to do. The university will work with Kappa Alpha headquarters and local alumni about a year before the five-year term ends to prepare for Kappa Alpha�s return or its dissolution.

This article originally appeared in the online edition of the Tribune on Tuesday, November 15, at 1:04 p.m.