ORONO, Maine — The dismissal of some members of the Pi Beta Phi sorority at the University of Maine after a visit from national officers of the Missouri-based fraternal organization on Sunday led to a “protest” fire, Orono Police Chief Josh Ewing said Tuesday.
“Officers responded with fire [fighters] to the report of something burning up by Orchard Trails at about 9:19 p.m.,” the police chief said, referring to an off-campus apartment complex. “The report was there was a group of people standing around the fire, where clothing and other personal possessions were burning. We spoke with one female who said it was some sort of protest.”
“There was some sort of issue with the sorority and the girls,” Ewing said later.
The national Pi Beta Phi headquarters notified UMaine about the visit, university spokeswoman Margaret Nagle said.
“The University of Maine was notified that national representatives would be visiting the Pi Beta Phi chapter this month, as the nationals often do with chapters,” Nagle said. “Since then, UMaine has had no other communication from the national organization.”
Nagle said she learned Monday “that the national visit resulted in some members being released and that Orono Fire responded to a small fire that was already out on arrival.”
Eily Cummings, spokeswoman for the national Pi Beta Phi organization, said Tuesday the number of people released from the sorority was not as many as some Maine media have reported. The UMaine Pi Beta chapter has 59 members, according to its roster.
“We had fraternity officials visit the chapter on Sunday, in a supporting role,” Cummings said. “The chapter visit was made to ensure the chapter was adhering to and complying with Pi Beta Phi policies. We wanted to make sure they were receiving the premier member experience.”
Pi Beta’s six core values are integrity, lifelong commitment, honor and respect, personal and intellectual growth, philanthropic service to others and sincere friendship, Emily Marsters, UMaine chapter president, wrote on the chapter’s website. The chapter room is located in Oxford Hall on campus.
The organization’s policies prohibit discrimination, sexual harassment, hazing, possessing or using illegal drugs and underage consumption of alcohol. A message left Tuesday for Marsters was not immediately returned.
The exact number of members dismissed from the UMaine chapter is something Cummings said she could not discuss.
“We don’t give out membership status information,” she said.
Orono Fire Chief Robert St. Louis said responding firefighters found “clothes, books and signs that had been burned near Building 12 at Orchard Trails, an off-campus student apartment complex. We wet it down and then left it for police.”
Ewing said the entire apartment building is filled with Pi Beta sorority members. The police chief said he doesn’t expect charges to be filed.