MATTER OF RENSSELAER SOCIETY OF ENGINEERS v. Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

• Decision Date: 29 April 1999
• Citation: 260 A.D.2d 992,689 N.Y.S.2d 292
• Parties: In the Matter of RENSSELAER SOCIETY OF ENGINEERS et al., Petitioners,<BR>v.<BR>RENSSELAER POLYTECHNIC INSTITUTE et al., Respondents.
• Court: New York Supreme Court — Appellate Division

260 A.D.2d 992

689 N.Y.S.2d 292

In the Matter of RENSSELAER SOCIETY OF ENGINEERS et al., Petitioners,

v.RENSSELAER POLYTECHNIC INSTITUTE et al., Respondents.

Mikoll, J. P.

Decided April 29, 1999.

Mercure, Crew III, Yesawich Jr. and Graffeo, JJ., concur.

Mikoll, J. P.

Petitioner Rensselaer Society of Engineers (hereinafter RSE) is a fraternity at respondent Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (hereinafter RPI), a private university in the City of Troy, Rensselaer County. RSE was charged with several violations of RPI's "Grounds for Disciplinary Action" based upon a September 5, 1997 "rush" event at its fraternity house featuring exotic dancers and live sex acts performed in front of some 100 student attendees. RPI's student handbook, in a section entitled "The Rensselaer Judicial System", sets forth a detailed, multistep procedure for the adjudication of disciplinary matters. Initially, an informal, fact-finding investigation is conducted by the office of the Dean of Students, culminating in a determination whether disciplinary action is warranted and, if so, the appropriate penalty. A student or student group aggrieved by an adverse decision is then afforded review at three successive levels.

Pursuant to this procedure, RPI's Assistant Dean of Students, respondent Norris A. Pearson, investigated the charges against RSE. From interviews with RSE's President and other students, Pearson determined that the "rush event", which RSE had advertised in flyers and reported to the Dean's office as a clambake, was promoted by RSE members in RPI's freshmen buildings as featuring "lesbian strippers". The clambake was followed by an audience-interactive strip show with dancers hired by RSE. At the conclusion of the performance, the completely nude strippers performed and/or simulated oral sex with one another. Members of the audience were invited to pay $20 to become "honorary lesbians", entitling them to individualized attention from the strippers. Based upon his investigation, Pearson concluded that RSE's conduct in hosting the "lesbian strippers" clambake violated four separate RPI disciplinary rules, and he placed RSE on disciplinary suspension from December 12, 1997 to January 1, 1999 and imposed specific conditions of return.

RSE appealed Pearson's decision to the Greek Judicial Board, which sustained his findings as to three of the four charges and upheld the penalty of suspension, but modified certain conditions of its return. Next, RSE appealed to RPI's Review Board, which reinstated Pearson's original findings and penalty. Upon RSE's further appeal to respondent President of RPI, the determination of the Review Board was upheld and RSE's suspension was made immediately effective. Despite its immediate suspension, RSE continued to initiate pledges, which RPI determined to be a violation of the terms of its suspension and extended the term thereof to June 2003. Having exhausted every level of internal review, petitioners initiated this CPLR article 78 proceeding challenging the determination and penalty on a wide-ranging number of grounds.

Two preliminary observations are in order. First, we note that Supreme Court improperly concluded that the petition raised a question of substantial evidence mandating transfer to this Court pursuant to CPLR 7804 (g). As the hearing held by the Greek Judicial Board was not required by law, the standard of review is whether the challenged determination is arbitrary or capricious (see, CPLR 7803 [3]; Matter of Colton v Berman, 21 NY2d 322, 329; Matter of Bevacqua v Sobol, 176 AD2d 1; ...