Yale's First Christian Fraternity Begins Spring Rush Without University Benefits
A Christian fraternity located at Yale University in New Haven, Conn., has chosen to begin the spring rush process this week as a de-registered fraternity so it can maintain its Christians-only policy.
As Yale University Press Secretary Thomas Conroy told The Christian Post, the Christian fraternity Beta Upsilon Chi, or BYX, is not in any violation of regulations because it has chosen to de-register, but it will not be able to use university resources.
"There are some student organizations at Yale that choose not to register for one reason or another and the university accepts their decisions. Beta Upsilon Chi is not in violation of any university regulations, it is simply choosing not to register," Conroy said in a statement emailed to The Christian Post.
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"Student organizations that choose not to register forgo the use of university resources available to registered organizations, that is all," Conroy added.
The new fraternity chose to de-register with the university after it was told it would be violating Yale's anti-discrimination policy by only allowing Christian members to join.
In Oct. 2012, the fraternity faced the possibility of having its charter revoked because of its Christians-only policy, and that stipulation goes against Yale University's anti-discrimination policy forbidding discrimination based on "sex, race, color, religion, age, disability, or national or ethnic origin."
As Christian student news source World on Campus previously pointed out, Yale does allow some exceptions to its anti-discrimination policy, such as the student group Yale Law Women barring men from membership.
As Victor Hicks, Beta Upsilon Chi's Yale founder and president, recently told the Yale Daily News, the fraternity chose to de-register with the university to maintain its Christian values.
"We decided not to compromise what our purpose is for being registered on campus," Hicks said.
"We are a brotherhood of Christian men. … We hold chapter meetings that are Christ-centered, and testimony is given at these meetings. The sole unifying aspect of the fraternity is that you believe in Christ," Hicks added.
Now that the fraternity has de-registered with the university, it will not be permitted to use many university benefits, including use the Yale name. Neither will it be allowed to receive grant money, participate in school events, and have access to various school facilities such as on-campus buildings.
The Beta Upsilon Chi fraternity, which exists nationwide, has previously encountered this same issue at other universities throughout the country, including at the University of Florida and the University of Missouri, but these institutions have altered their anti-discrimination policies to allow the religion-specific group.
A similar issue occurred in 2012 at Vanderbilt University, a private college in Nashville, Tenn., where several student-run religious organizations lost their official recognition with the university because their charters did not coincide with the school's anti-discrimination policy.
