OU probe: SAE chant originated on national frat cruise

The University of Oklahoma will hire a new vice president to handle diversity efforts in the wake of the racist chant that made national headlines earlier this month, the university's president announced Friday.

University president David Boren announced the findings of the university's investigation into the chant sung by members of Sigma Alpha Epsilon on a bus headed to a founder's day event on March 7.

Disciplinary action against roughly 25 additional members of SAE on the bus singing the chant range from community service to sensitivity training, Boren said.

Officers of the local chapter met with representatives of "affected groups" on campus, giving personal apologies the university's black community. Boren sat in on that meeting.

"To say that it was emotional for me would be an understatement," Boren said. "Because I observed our students rendering apologies [...] and dedicating themselves to the rebuilding of our university."

The local chapter was disbanded and two members were expelled from the university in the days after the video found the national spotlight.

Boren said the university had diversity and sensitivity training programs before this incident that were less comprehensive.

After over 160 interviews, Boren said the university concluded that the chant is "widely known and informally shared" among Sigma Alpha Epsilon nationally. The chant originated from a national leadership cruise sponsored by the national fraternity four years ago, he said.

From there, Boren said, the chant became localized and became "part of the institutionalized culture of the chapter" at OU, as it was taught to the chapter's pledges.

He added that racism is not a problem only at Oklahoma or among SAE nationally. There is "an epidemic of racism" across the nation and OU is making strides to end it, he said.

Boren said the university has written a letter to the executive director of SAE asking whether or not the national organization has began its own investigation into the chant. Boren wants to know the measures taken by the national fraternity to make sure the chant doesn't happen again.

The investigation also indicated alcohol consumption that was in violation of university code prior to the founder's day event on March 7. A number of high school students were invited to the event and were on the bus at the time of the chant.

Boren could not go into detail on the high school students present.

No further action will be taken in addition to the measures Boren announced Friday, he said.

"We pay a price, and we move forward," Boren said. "That's what we are doing here at the University of Oklahoma."