EXCLUSIVE: Students' organization name denied in May based on April rules, conservative group claims

The Dartmouth College Republicans (DCR) are claiming that the New Hampshire college retroactively applied a new policy to accuse the student organization of illicitly changing its name, constitution, and logo. 

DCR, originally operating under the College Republicans National Committee (CRNC), attempted this past spring to change its affiliation and associated name to College Republicans United, a distinct umbrella organization for college Republican groups. 

This update requires name and logo changes that Dartmouth College’s Council on Student Organizations (COSO) insisted DCR did not meet. 

”The changes made suggest that the mission and nature of the ‘Dartmouth College Republicans United’ are not consistent with those of the College Republicans. Therefore, it cannot be approved and recognized as the College Republicans’ constitution,” COSO stated in a May 5 email to DCR. 

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However, the group asserts that the rules COSO cited did not exist on the latter’s website prior to April 27, approximately one month after DCR submitted its notification. 

”The only thing we are aware of is that you created a new page of rules on April 27th, roughly a week prior to your initial email claiming that we are in violation of said rules,” the DCR said in a May 30 email to COSO. 

Chloe Ezzo, the new president of the Dartmouth College Republicans, is also a Campus Reform Correspondent. 

DCR submitted the constitutional changes to COSO via email on March 27. COSO then denied the notification via email on May 5. 

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Campus Reform obtained emails between DCR and Dartmouth College’s Council on Student Organizations (COSO) as well as screenshots of the latter’s website that appear to corroborate the students’ claims. 

Griffin Mackey, former president of DCR, told Campus Reform the group was unaware of the rules COSO accused it of violating until the group received the May 5 email.

Associate Vice President for Communications Diana Lawrence told Just News that the rules have “been in place for at least a decade.”

Campus Reform obtained a screenshot of COSO’s website as it appeared on Mar. 4. 

The webpage appears not to contain the “Name and Constitution Changes” tab, the content of which was at the heart of COSO’s objections to DCR’s notification, based on emails obtained by Campus Reform.

A screenshot of the webpage as of Apr. 27 also shows that the “Name and Constitution Changes” is not present. 

Campus Reform could not determine that the tab appeared as it does now prior to DCR’s Mar. 27 notification. 

“If [the rules] always existed, why would COSO need to create a brand new page,” Mackey asked. “How does COSO expect groups to follow ‘internal rules’ that are not available publicly?”

COSO’s email came two weeks after the DCR hosted James O’Keefe of the conservative Project Veritas. In an attempt to address the DCR’s troubles with COSO, O’Keefe unsuccessfully attempted to meet with Anna Hall, Chair of COSO and Senior Assistant Dean for Student Life.

The attempt was captured in a video posted to the DCR’s Twitter account. 

Confronting the @dartmouth administration with James O’Keefe and Project Veritas pic.twitter.com/dO63XjpwV0

— Dartmouth College Republicans (@DartRepublicans) May 1, 2022

O’Keefe, accompanied by Ezzo, sought Hall to ask about an event featuring journalist Andy Ngo and activist Gabriel Nadales that the group attempted to hold in person, but which was subsequently forced to be held online.

DCR was saddled with $3,600 in securities fees associated with the Ngo event, as Campus Reform reported in April.

Campus Reform reached out to Dartmouth College for comment; this article will be updated accordingly.

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