U of A says fraternity made new members eat live goldfish

This is the fifth fraternity at the university that has been investigated for allegations of hazing this year. One faced a loss of recognition for five years, while two were put on probation and one was placed on interim loss of recognition.

In a letter Sept. 2, UA Associate Dean of Students Whitney Mohr stated that in the fall of 2025, new members of Sigma Tau Gamma were subjected to hazing practices, where specifically they were forced to consume “large quantities of alcohol and live goldfish.” They were also subjected to “screaming, degradation and threats from active members,” Mohr stated.

The fraternity has been placed on an activities suspension status, which means it is prohibited from hosting, attending, participating and sponsoring any activities until the investigation is complete and the case is resolved. During this suspension, club business meetings are the only allowed activities, and the fraternity is prohibited from recruiting new members or holding activities related to that.

Sigma Tau Gamma did not immediately respond to the Star’s request Wednesday for comment.

The UA has a total of 50 fraternities and sororities.

“Every student deserves to belong to organizations that build leadership, character and lifelong friendships in a safe environment,” Patricia Prelock, UA’s chief academic officer and provost, said in a UA statement in July.

“The overwhelming majority of our student organizations reflect those values every day. Those that do not will be thoroughly investigated and held accountable,” she said then. “Hazing has no place at the U of A, and we will continue investing in prevention, education and accountability to protect our students and strengthen a campus culture built on safety, respect and belonging.”

During the spring, Sigma Alpha Mu faced a loss of recognition for five years after its new members were subjected to hazing practices, including pouring boiling butter over their heads, which led to burns from hot liquids, forced consumption of alcohol, alcohol poisoning and blackouts, UA officials said.

Two other fraternities — Sigma Phi Epsilon and Phi Delta Theta — were placed on probation, told to pay a monetary fine of $25 per fraternity member and to conduct hazing awareness workshops, among other measures, after being investigated in the spring as well.

UA officials said Sigma Phi Epsilon subjected new members to sleep deprivation, forced alcohol consumption, “kidnapping,” and forced calisthenics, and that Phi Delta Theta also subjected new members to “forced alcohol consumption, degradation, humiliation, hazing, and other threatening and endangering behaviors” in the fall 2025 and spring 2026 semesters.

Another fraternity, Sigma Chi, was alleged to have provided alcohol as well as drugs, knowingly or unknowingly, to UA students at two separate events on April 2 and April 11, but its charges were later dismissed by the UA after the investigation.