You’ll Need More than a Wet Floor Sign

The Midwest and Southern regions of the United States are experiencing dangerously low temperatures, with extreme cold warnings. As students hope for class cancellations and brace for the freezing weather, campus staff must prepare for more than ice. You receive a call from a sorority president reporting a burst pipe and flooding on the first floor of a chapter house. You grab a “wet floor” sign and realize you’ll need more than a sign.

The flooded house may be familiar to many of us. The truth is crises impact our lives– personally and professionally. For Stacey, the most significant crises were a neonaticide case and a hazing-related death. For Will, he has helped facilitate care for students in mental health crises, medical emergencies, facility fires and floods, and chapter facilities robberies/break-ins. Stacey and Will’s experiences with crises are not unique. Since March 2020, many higher education administrators have operated in a constant state of crisis, navigating public health emergencies, protests, and legislative challenges.

This article aims to provide fraternity and sorority life (FSL) professionals with a broad understanding of the different types of crises and key strategies and recommendations for managing them. More importantly, it reinforces the idea that everyone has a role to play when a crisis impacts our campuses and chapters.

Defining Crisis

When the term university crisis arises, many might recall the National Guard’s presence and the loss of life at Kent State and Jackson State in 1970, the collapse of the Texas A&M Bonfire, or the Seton Hall residence hall fire. For FSL professionals, thoughts often turn to hazing and alcohol-related incidents, student deaths, or facility emergencies. As the higher education landscape evolves and faces financial uncertainties, hiring challenges, operational shifts, and questions about the value of a college degree, the ability to effectively manage and provide care during crises becomes increasingly vital.

According to Zdziarski (2006), a crisis in higher education is defined as “an event, often sudden and unexpected, that disrupts the normal operations of the institution or its educational mission” (p. 5). Crises threaten personnel, property, finances, and institutional reputation and can take many forms. Zdziarski et al. (2021) categorized crises into three main types:

• Environmental Crises: Natural occurrences such as winter storms, hurricanes, or external flooding.
• Human Crises: Events caused by or involving individuals, including deaths, crimes, mental health emergencies, and cyberattacks.
• Facility Crises: Disruptions to physical infrastructure, such as fires, power outages, or internal flooding.

Importantly, crises may span multiple categories, requiring an integrated response.

The Role of FSL Professionals in Crisis Response

FSL professionals are uniquely positioned to support students and institutions in times of crisis. Their relationships with students and familiarity with campus policies make them crucial responders. Their responsibilities may include:

• Providing Support and Care: Trusted by students, FSL staff are often the first point of contact during a crisis, offering emotional support and connecting individuals to resources.
• Facilitating Communication: Acting as liaisons, FSL professionals bridge communication between students, university leadership, national organizations, and families. Pre-established relationships position them as the communication hub during emergencies.
• Enforcing Policies and Procedures: FSL professionals ensure established institutional and organizational protocols are followed to maintain safety and accountability.
• Conducting Assessments and Investigations: Post-crisis, these professionals gather information, assess the impact, and work to prevent recurrence.

It is important to remember that preparedness is key. A crisis responder should not learn about policies, processes, or their response role during a crisis. With the help of their supervisors, FSL professionals must proactively build strong relationships with students, staff, and campus partners, review and rehearse crisis protocols with team members, and identify key contacts before a crisis occurs.

A Crisis Management Framework

There are many crisis management theories and frameworks; however, most models have three stages: pre-crisis, during, and post-crisis (Allan, 2024). Pre-crisis helps us think about prevention, risk mitigation, and detecting warning signs of a crisis; during-crisis is the response, and post-crisis focuses on care, recovery, and learning. The table below summarizes what FSL professionals should consider during each of these stages.

To better understand crisis management strategies, let’s examine the flooded sorority house case using the three stages.

As a reminder, your region is experiencing dangerously low temperatures, with extreme cold warnings issued by local weather stations. University officials are in meetings discussing the potential of class cancellations and issuing cold-weather tips to residential students. However, the fraternity and sorority houses are off-campus, and you are unsure how these tips will be communicated to off-campus students. You are currently in the pre-crisis stage.

Pre-crisis questions to ask:

• What are the potential threats (e.g., frozen pipes)?
• What are preventative or risk mitigation strategies that can be implemented?
• What policies or processes exist that you may need to review?
• What else is occurring in the environment? Are other houses, buildings, and universities in the area concerned about pipes bursting? If so, how are they preparing?
• Who do you need to communicate with? If these are off-campus houses, are you contacting housing corporations, landlords, headquarters staff, or advisors?
• When and how will you be notified of information from the meeting with university officials?

You received a call from a frantic sorority president reporting a burst pipe and flooding on the first floor of a chapter house. She indicates that there is standing water, and the belongings of members who live on the first floor are ruined. The president is focused on how mad and upset these members are, and she does not know what to do. You are now in the during-crisis stage. At this stage, we recommend implementing the SBAR, which stands for Situation, Background, Assessment, Recommendation (Wakeman, n.d.). This framework is an effective communication tool for crisis response. SBAR guides professionals in presenting concise, structured information and making informed decisions under pressure.

• Situation: The first floor of a sorority house is flooded with standing water. Items belonging to members may be damaged.
• Background: There is a cold weather warning. You are aware of pipes bursting throughout town and in two campus buildings. There is standing water in the sorority house, and items are damaged. Sorority members are upset and unsure of the next steps.
• Assessment questions to consider: What policies and protocols do you need to consult? Who should you call? What resources and support exist for the students impacted? Can the members stay in the house, or do they need to be temporarily moved?
• Recommendation: Your recommendation should prioritize initiating resources and response, providing care, and communicating with stakeholders. Also, determine your role in the response and the responsibilities of others.

The next morning, the cold weather warning expired, the sorority members have been relocated to a nearby hotel, and plumbers, cleaners, and insurance companies are on the scene to assess damages and begin repairs. You are now post-crisis. During the post-crisis stage, continuing to center care for those impacted is important. This includes attending to the physical and emotional well-being of students, families, and staff. It is also important to acknowledge the potential impact of crises on professionals, including the risk of secondary trauma. When navigating the post-crisis stage, consider the following:

• Do the students need to be connected to other resources, such as counseling, food pantries, a clothing closet, legal services, etc.?
• Are there any academic resources (e.g., books or materials, class absences, leave of absences, withdrawals) that need to be employed?  
• Who and how should university officials communicate with family members of those impacted? Is it the university’s responsibility, headquarters, or someone else?
• What is the timeline for members to access the house or move back in? How is that being communicated?
• Who is responsible for paying for the hotel for the displaced students?
• Are there any campus or sorority events that may impact how this sorority can participate? Is it recruitment? If so, how do you provide support and help the members navigate this?
• When will you debrief and reflect on this event? Who needs to be at the debriefing to ensure that learning and recovery take place?

Crises come in many forms, and fraternity and sorority life professionals are often on the front lines, responding before others even recognize that a crisis has begun. While a “wet floor” sign may serve as a symbolic warning, effective crisis response requires much more: preparation, strong relationships, proactive care, and an understanding of roles and responsibilities. FSL professionals must be equipped to assess situations, make informed decisions, and communicate clearly within their teams and across stakeholders. As fraternity and sorority life professionals proactively think about their crisis management strategies, we encourage you to:

1. Use case studies with your team to help them practice decision-making and learn more about existing tools and resources.
2. Create a list of key stakeholders who may have expertise or resources.
3. Continue to develop cultural competence. The act of receiving care may look different depending on a person’s identity. Also, consider local spiritual or religious leaders who may provide support and guidance.
4. Put all the essential phone numbers in your phone. This may include on-call phone numbers, university police, hospital numbers, etc.
5. Gain an understanding of your supervisor’s crisis management style. How will they communicate with you during a crisis? What is their role, and what is yours?

References

Allan, S. L. (2024). Navigating a campus crisis: A feminist inquiry examining care and social transformation [Doctoral dissertation, Bowling Green State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=bgsu1719401149519235

Wakeman, C. (n.d.). SBAR-Tool: Ego Bypass Toolkit. Retrieved August 2023, from https://realitybasedleadership.com/free-reality-based-resources/sbar-tool/.

Zdziarski, E. L. (2006). Crisis in the context of higher education. In K. S. Harper, B. G. Paterson, & E. L. Zdziarski (Eds.), Crisis management: Responding from the heart (pp. 3-24).

National Association of Student Personnel Administrators, Inc.

Zdziarski, E. L., Rollo, J. M., & Dunkel, N.W. (2021). The crisis matrix. In E. L. Zdziarski, N. W. Dunkel, & J.z M. Rollo (Eds.), Campus crisis management: A comprehensive guide for practitioners (2nd ed., pp. 32-46). Routledge.

About the Authors

Stacey Allan, Ph.D. is the associate director of student engagement at Bowling Green State University (BGSU). Stacey’s professional experience in higher education includes roles in student involvement, residence life, student conduct, civic engagement, and leadership development. With over 15 years of experience in fraternity and sorority life, she has led initiatives focused on health and safety education, growth and retention, student success, and advisor engagement. She earned her bachelor’s degree in theatre from Lake Erie College, a Master of Science in Education degree focusing on Student Affairs and Leadership Practices from Youngstown State University, and a doctorate in Higher Education Administration from BGSU. Stacey volunteers with the Association for Fraternity and Sorority Advisors and has contributed to publications and presentations sponsored by the Timothy J. Piazza Center for Fraternity and Sorority Research. Stacey is a member of Gamma Phi Beta.

Will Cangialosi (He/Him) currently serves as the director of Fraternity and Sorority Life at Carnegie Mellon University. He is a two-time alumnus of SUNY Plattsburgh, where he earned his bachelor’s degree in chemistry and a master’s degree in Student Affairs and Higher Education and Counseling. Will’s professional experience in higher education includes his roles in Fraternity and Sorority Life, Orientation, residence life, leadership development, hazing prevention, and anti-hazing law implementation. Will is a volunteer for the national SAFE Team for Sigma Sigma Sigma Sorority and for AFA, and has contributed to publications sponsored by the Timothy J. Piazza Center for Fraternity and Sorority Research. He is a member of Alpha Sigma Phi.