UMd. student behind racist email leaves campus for semester

COLLEGE PARK, Md. – The fraternity member behind a racist, sexist email at the University of Maryland will not return to campus this semester.

“By mutual consent with the student, the parents and the university, we felt it was in the best interest of everybody,” said university spokesman Brian Ullmann.

The student – now a former Kappa Sigma member – sent the email in January of last year but resurfaced in March. In it, the student uses racial slurs to refer to black, Asian and Indian women, and alludes to raping women during rush week.

University officials were only recently made aware of the message.

“From a campus perspective, we need to move behind the email and address larger issues,” Ullmann said.

In an email, Linda Clement, the vice president for student affairs, says she and University President Wallace Loh have met with the NAACP and student leaders to discuss other changes, including mandatory sexual assault prevention and multicultural education programs for members of the Greek community.

The school is also developing a student group that will advise the university’s president on diversity issues.

WTOP’s Nick Iannelli contributed to this report.

Federal News Network Logo
Log in to your WTOP account for notifications and alerts customized for you.

Sign up