Detailed information about the University of Alabama's fraternity drug-testing program has been revealed via internal university documents AL.com obtained in response to a public records request.

UA quietly began testing members of several fraternities for drugs in September in a controversial arrangement one expert has described as one of the boldest anti-drug initiatives currently in place at any university in the nation.

The documents outline aspects of the drug-testing program ranging from how exactly it works to specific tests, screenings and rules members of participating fraternities must consent to in order to avoid being kicked out of their frats.

The UA MPACT (Maximizing Potential through Academics Community & Treatment) substance abuse program's student group drug-testing regime - dubbed the "Student Organization Program" or SOP - establishes a framework under which the university tests participating student organization's members for drugs and alcohol, the documents show.

The documents never specifically mention the terms "fraternity," "sorority," "Pan-Hellenic" or "Greek," instead describing it as a program for "student organizations."

But a four-page "Student Organization Partnership Agreement" that participating groups must fill out repeatedly stipulates requirements for "pledges," "new members," "initiated members" and "Housing Corporation[s]" and includes terms like "active roster," "whole house" "initiation" and "new member program."

The choice of terminology strongly suggests that the program is largely tailored to the Greek system, confirming statements several fraternity members made to AL.com late last year.

Some highlights of the Student Organization Partnership Agreement are listed below, or scroll past the highlights to view the documents in full:

"The particulars of testing (location, date and times) will be prearranged by the MPACT program. Testing may be by hair and/or urine samples following MPACT procedures and chain of custody protocols."

"Among others, MPACT may test for the following substances: Marijuana (THC), Cocaine, Heroin, Benzos (Xanax, etc.), Opiates (Hydrocodone, etc.), Amphetamines (Adderall, etc.), Buprenorphine (Suboxone), MDMA, PCP, alcohol, and others."

Participating organizations must establish a five-member "health and safety board" that receives information about failed drug tests and other infractions from the MPACT program and determines how the group will discipline its members. The university also has the ability to discipline group members who do not live up to the requirements of the drug screening program.

A "baseline test" is carried out at the beginning of the school year, during which all members of participating organizations must pass an initial drug test.

Following the baseline test, five percent of every participating organization's members must submit to an MPACT program-administered drug test each week throughout the school year.

The specific members to be tested each week are selected at random by the program. Failing or missing a test initiates a set of protocols that determines the penalties for the infraction.

"Failure to show up for a test when called will result in the absent Group member's indefinite suspension from the Group. The make-up test will be a hair test and must be passed in order to be considered for reinstatement into the group."

Missed or failed drug tests are reported to the organization's health and safety board, which also has the power to order a group to member submit to a non-random drug screening "if a significant health and/or safety concern arises related to that member's substance use or abuse."

"Student and parental notification will occur with each positive test result generated, whether that result is generated by an actual test or the failure to take a test."

Students who fail a random drug screening must submit to weekly drug tests, and MPACT will "make recommendations for educational or treatment programming to the individual member."

"If 75% or greater of any weekly random sample fail the drug test, a whole house test will be triggered immediately."

Student participants in the drug screening program are required to sign another document, titled "Student Organization Member - Notice & Consent Form," which outlines other details about the program.

Among other things, the form states that "the confidentiality of alcohol and drug abuse records maintained by the University's MPACT program is protected by federal law and regulations. Generally, MPACT may not say to a person outside the program that a student participates in MPACT, or disclose any information identifying a student as an alcohol or drug abuser" without student consent unless "the disclosure is allowed by a court order," or "the disclosure is made to medical personnel in a medical emergency or to a qualified personnel for research, audit or program evaluation."

The language in that document may ease concerns among critics of the drug-testing program who have questioned whether the information obtained by MPACT will be used by other government agencies or to further incriminate participants.

As of December, only a handful of UA fraternities appeared to be participating in MPACT's Student Organization Program, including the university's chapters of the prominent Sigma Nu and Sigma Alpha Epsilon (SAE) fraternities. MPACT is part of a collaborative effort between the university's Student Health Center and the Dean of Students' Office of Student Conduct.

UA spokesman Chris Bryant confirmed to AL.com late last year that it is drug-testing members of some Greek organizations, though he declined to say how many or which ones.

"Chapters have had the option of implementing substance abuse testing for their members for several years - since approximately 2009. The chapters make the decision to test in these instances," Bryant said via email in November. "UA supports their decision. Sometimes testing is a result of sanctions placed on the chapter as a disciplinary action."

David Westol, principal and owner of Limberlost Consulting Inc., works with fraternity chapters across the nation on issues including risk and crisis management, membership reviews and hazing. In December he described UA's drug-testing program as one of the boldest anti-drug initiatives in effect at any American university.

"I've heard about Alabama doing drug screening or drug testing of fraternities, but I'm not aware of any other university that's gone to that point and using it to any great extent," he told AL.com.

On Jan. 19, AL.com requested a range of public documents from the University of Alabama. UA spokeswoman Deborah M. Lane provided the above-referenced documents via email on Friday, but wrote that "UA has no documents that are responsive" to two other portions of the Jan. 19 request: