Tom Walker, Junior Editor
It’s 1 a.m., and Donald Abels is working. He’s not in his office writing up conduct reports or Community Standards actions. He’s helping advise organizations on how to be their best selves.
In the early hours of the morning his colleagues, like Carter Brown, often find him hard at work. “He sends emails at one in the morning. He’s approving events on Saturday at 11 p.m. So, he cares. He’s working a lot and he’s working long hours. He cares a lot about this work, this institution, and the safety of these students,” said Brown.
As Assistant Director of Student Involvement, Brown works closely with Abels on event approval and student organization training. Brown elaborated on the importance of Abels’ position as Director of Greek Life. “[Sewanee] is a community based place and Greek Life is a fabric of social life in a lot of ways. I think [Abels] has made a commitment to do that work because it’s fulfilling and he deeply cares about it. He’s interested in following trends and current events related to Greek Life. He has a network at other places. His office is always open. I think Greek Life in general can be a daunting office to walk into, but that’s certainly not what we want here.”
Some of what makes the Greek Life office appear daunting may be connected with Abels’ tenure at LSU. In an article written by The Purple in 2022, then Editor-in-Chief Amelia Leaphart covered allegations of entrapment that were alleged against Abels at LSU. While Dean of Students Erica Howard confirmed that Abels left LSU in good standing, many others were concerned about Abels being hired at Sewanee.
Abels shared Brown’s concern that students find the Greek Life office as something scary to enter. But, students who work closely with Abels didn’t seem to fear the office (or Abels) at all. Vice President of Recruitment for the Sorority Council Emma Kate Temple (C ‘25) said, “Donald is surprisingly funny. He’s easy to work with. We have a lot of our meetings at Clurg which I think is fun. He’s definitely not scary.”
Abels believes that much of the fear comes from misunderstanding. While he’s involved in Greek Life policies like making membership rosters, reporting members, and educational requirements, he’s uninvolved in the University’s other policies. “Anything else outside of [Greek Life policies], like University policies, event policies, recognized student organization event policies, and The Code of Conduct, I don’t have a role in. I do provide support on the back end though,” he said.
When an allegation is made against a fraternity or sorority, Abels reaches out to the organization’s president to provide support. “You get that email from Community Standards and the panic sets in. You think, ‘Oh, my God, we’re in trouble.’ I’m here to help them understand that nobody’s saying that right now. Basically, [Community Standards] is just looking for more information. I can help [the organization] and how they approach that process. There’s a chapter that’s meeting this afternoon regarding something conduct related, and I’m going with that chapter president to that meeting. I’m not a part of that meeting, but I’m there for support. Instead of Donald being the conduct guy, I wish they knew what I actually did,” said Abels.
Abels’ position in the process has been an intentional departure from the way things were done previously. About the previous person occupying his role he said, “They were actually serving my role, but also on the adjudication side. That’s not the best practice, and that’s not realistic. You can’t be an advocate and an adjudicator. My role is to be that support system to help answer clarifying questions they have but also to help ease their stress about the process.”
Abels believes that helping students better understand his position will make them feel more comfortable coming into his office. “I think most people don’t understand [my role]. Chapter leaders understand it. I do not think the average member understands it. I am intentionally removed from the Community Standards, or conduct, process,” he said.
For Abels, advocating for Greek Life means pushing for equal treatment. “That means managing what people expect, and should expect from Greek orgs and also making sure that University policy is very equitable. I don’t believe that fraternities and sororities should be treated any different than the Chess Club when it comes to policies. At the end of the day, they’re both student organizations,” he said. Abels expressed the importance of the meaningful experiences that all student organizations, and especially Greek Life, can give to students.
Before Abels’ arrival on campus, Greek Life didn’t have a dedicated office. With his arrival, a $30 fee was instituted to fund a budget for the office. “It’s not a ton of money, but it’s enough to provide food at events. It’s enough to order recruitment shirts for our Rho Chi volunteers. It’s enough to provide stipends for student leaders to hire an hourly student worker,” said Abels. With student workers, Greek organizations have the means to build robust roster management procedures and new member onboarding processes. These procedures help ensure equitable treatment for organization members. “I’m a firm believer that if we’re going to say that something is required, then you need to be able to show me where it’s written. If it’s not written, then it’s hard to justify why it’s required,” said Abels.
Much of Abels’ work is about putting students in a position to do their best work. In a day, 30% of Abels’ time is spent providing chapter support. In the mornings, providing support often means responding to emails and preparing for meetings. At midday, Abels often meets with staff members or members of the Greek Council Executive Board. Afternoons and nights often contain workshops with sports teams, like the soccer team, or chapters. About the workload Abels said, “This job is not a nine-to-five job. Being available during the evenings is a part of my role too, it’s not just during the day.”
When asked about his controversy at LSU, Donald Abels declined to comment.