A base of alumni support is expected to help get a Western Kentucky University fraternity up and running by January following a five-year hiatus. Bowling Green resident Jeff Sasse, who serves as Kappa Sigma Alumni Association president, said he and others have worked to bring the fraternity back to Western and will continue to offer a presence in an advisory capacity when the fraternity begins in the spring semester. Theyre going to need support and thats what well do, Sasse said. Kappa Sigma had its charter revoked in 1996 following allegations of hazing. A lawsuit filed in August 1997 by Louisville resident and Kappa Sigma pledge Eric Cecil alleged a series of hazing rituals during his August 1996 pledge for the fraternity, according to court records. The suit sought damages for emotional distress and was settled in August 2000.As a result of the hazing allegations, the fraternity was ordered to disband for at least four years so fraternity members who participated in the hazing would not be in the new cycle if the fraternity returned. Sasse said his time as a Kappa Sigma officer and president in fall 1986 and spring 1987 at Western was a positive time. He hopes the more than 100 Kappa Sigma alumni in Bowling Green will help as mentors or advisers to the fraternity. A presentation to allow the group to return was offered in April at an Inter-Fraternity Council meeting, but the group did not receive approval by the required 75 percent of votes, according to Greek Affairs Coordinator Charley Pride. A few weeks later, members of the IFC changed their position and Kappa Sigma received the necessary approval to return, Pride said. The decision will allow the fraternity to begin recruiting new members in the third or fourth week of January during the spring semester after the other fraternities have completed their rush, Pride said.