On the morning of Monday, March 30 before classes began, the greek letters “Gamma Sigma” and “Sigma Pi Gamma Sigma” were written in chalk on the southern and eastern walls of the R. L. Smith Mechanical Engineering and Engineering Mechanics Building. The markings were subsequently washed off. The University has specific policy concerning drawing or writing with chalk on campus: “Chalking is authorized as a tool for non-commercial advertisement and communication. Chalking is only allowed on University owned and maintained concrete sidewalks, at least 20 feet from the entrance to any building. Chalking is strictly prohibited on buildings, pavers, steps, retaining walls, or other University-owned property,” from article 5.07 of the university policies. The writing in question violates this policy, being written directly on a building and not 20 feet away. A thread on reddit’s MTU community saw speculation about the perpetrators, with some blaming fraternity Sigma Pi and others proposing that it was a “false flag” meant to malign Greek life on campus. Others commented on the foolishness of the act. “Do people forget theres cameras all over campus? Rookie mistake,” commented user raumiester999. Another user by the name of sortaHeisenberg said “Not only did they put it on buildings against policy, but they also broke the “within 20 feet of entrance” rule in front of the MEEM. It’s amazing what one Google search beforehand can accomplish.”
It is not yet known who is responsible for the lettering. Facilities Management did not have information on the incident and Public Safety could not be reached for comment.
*Note: This article ran April 4
