I AM GRATEFUL to the generations of Sigma Alpha Epsilon members who welcomed me into their world. From the beginning, Brad Cohen, then the national president, embraced the idea of a book, inviting me both to SAE’s convention and leadership school. Cohen showed uncommon openness and belief in the essential strength of the organization and encouraged others to share their views with me. I am also indebted to Cohen’s successor, Steven Churchill, and the fraternity’s hardworking headquarters staff, especially Blaine Ayers, Brandon Weghorst, Clark Brown, and Ashlee Canty. Undergraduate chapter members Mike Moore, Carter Goodwyn, Jack Counts III, and Andrew Cowie were especially helpful in explaining the cultures of their particular outposts and introducing me to other members. Alumni Jack Counts Jr., Ian Gove, Michael Scarborough, and, of course, Chris Hallam gave me a sense of their passionate commitment to fraternity life. I appreciate their assistance and good humor during the years I worked on True Gentlemen.
The victims of fraternity behavior rarely have a voice. Doug Fierberg, who devoted much of his legal career to representing those hurt at Greek houses, helped me understand these tragedies and what can be done to prevent them. To protect other students, Justin Stuart broke the code of silence around hazing and came forward to expose its horrors. The attorneys Trey Parker and Matthew Fraling offered their experience in navigating the complexities of a sexual-assault trial. Gabriela Lopez, most of all, showed uncommon bravery, both on the stand and in agreeing to talk with me. Despite my initial uneasiness, she insisted on using her name as her contribution toward helping other assault survivors.
This book would never have happened without my colleagues at Bloomberg News. David Glovin, a dogged investigative reporter and former prosecutor, came up with the idea of looking at fraternity deaths and exploring the little-understood world of insurance and liability. David had already written several first-rate stories when he invited me in as his partner for the articles that would increasingly focus on SAE. David was unable to join me in writing the book because of a well-deserved promotion as editor, but he offered tremendous support from conception to research to his careful reading of the draft. Dan Golden and Jonathan Kaufman, my longtime mentors and friends, provided their characteristically brilliant insights as editors on the original series and, afterward, in helping me with the manuscript. Matt Winkler, the founding editor of Bloomberg News, and his top deputy, Laurie Hays, championed the series and all investigative reporting on education. Bloomberg editor in chief John Micklethwait and his deputies, Reto Gregori and Laura Zelenko, generously supported my book leave. My current editors, David Gillen and David Papadopoulos, were unfailingly patient and flexible as I finished the manuscript.
Ben Adams, my editor at PublicAffairs, shared my vision of a book about fraternities and then took a risk on a first-time author. Ben offered great wisdom in how to structure a nonfiction narrative and followed up with wise and careful revisions. Clive Priddle, publisher of PublicAffairs, and Peter Osnos, its founder, showed great enthusiasm for the subject. The rest of the team at PublicAffairs—Melissa Veronesi, Melissa Raymond, Katherine Haigler, Michele Wynn, Jaime Leifer, Lindsay Fradkoff, Josie Urwin, and others—expertly guided True Gentlemen from manuscript to bookstores.
I wouldn’t have found PublicAffairs without my tireless agent, Lynn Johnston, who introduced me to Ben and then educated me in the ways of New York publishing. She contributed vital suggestions in the early stages of the manuscript and championed the book’s promotion.
Early readers of the book offered great insight. Along with my colleagues at Bloomberg, I owe much, in this and all other endeavors, to my brother Paul Hechinger, a veteran journalist who offered moral support and editing suggestions. My good friend Jeff Frieden somehow managed to read chapters almost overnight and offer sharp critiques while teaching college government courses and traveling the world.
My parents, Fred and Grace Hechinger, set an example for me to follow. As education journalists, they understood the central role of schools and colleges in America. My father, in particular, a Jewish refugee from Nazi Germany, helped me understand how colleges must be held to their promise of welcoming newcomers to the United States. My daughter, Rachel Hechinger, offered the invaluable perspective of a young woman in college. For as long as I can remember, she has asked me when I was going to write a book. She inspired me with her fierce determination and her sense of social justice.
I am indebted, most of all, to my wife, Ricki Morell. I am blessed to share my life with a brilliant journalist and editor. She spent countless hours on the manuscript, pushing me to rewrite and refusing to let me send it before it met her high standards. She has taught me much of what I know about writing—not to mention life, love, and the proper use of the semicolon.