Update, 9 p.m.: A Penn State spokesperson issued the following statement:

“The IFC demonstrated great leadership in previous years by not permitting registered social events on the Friday and Saturday of this weekend. We again strongly encouraged them to do the same, as their past efforts limited the impact on the Highlands neighborhood and the local community.

“We are disappointed that the IFC is choosing this path, as we should be working together to reduce high-risk and dangerous drinking that results in a strain on our hospital, police and EMS resources, as well as has a significant negative impact on students. In sharing with us their approach, the IFC believes their processes and risk management efforts will promote safer registered social events than private, unregistered events.

“We strongly encourage our IFC chapters to take the weekend’s activities seriously and remind all students to be responsible members of our community.”

Original Story: For the first time in over a decade, the Penn State Interfraternity Council (IFC) will allow fraternities to host registered socials on State Patty’s Weekend, IFC President Kyle Quinn confirmed in an email. State Patty’s Weekend, an annual celebration the weekend between THON and spring break, will take place February 24 to 26.

The decision, made Monday, February 13, grants Penn State’s 36 fraternities the ability to host parties throughout the weekend. Since 2012, IFC has banned fraternities from hosting events to reduce general crime and overconsumption throughout the weekend. Crime has steadily decreased since the ban was first put in place.

Quinn requested that student media outlets, local news outlets, and social media pages refrain from publishing the news in an attempt to minimize the influx of visitors or other subsequent problems.

“This year is a test to see if fraternities can handle organized socials on State Patty’s weekend and it can either go well or bad,” Quinn said in an email to Onward State. “It will decide if we can celebrate this weekend for years to come.”

University Park Undergraduate Association President Sydney Gibbard echoed Quinn’s request and described the differences between registered and unregistered events.

“Unregistered socials are inevitable, but they don’t have the safety infrastructure in place to hold students accountable and keep them safe during a high-risk weekend,” Gibbard said in a follow-up email. “Registered socials have restrictions such as the kind of alcohol they can serve, the capacity of the event, and the required sober brothers to monitor the house.”

Gibbard stated that there would be safety precautions in place to accommodate registered socials during State Patty’s Weekend, but asked again that news outlets forgo the publication of the change to reduce “press driving turnout up at these socials and other events during State Patty’s.”

A Penn State spokesperson didn’t respond to a request for comment.