A typical Oreo can be taken apart simply by twisting, but it will take more than twisting to remove some cookied from the campus sculpture of the same name.

An outside restorer has been hired to remove cookies glued onto the campus statue in a prank executed late last month.

After being identified by several witnesses, members of the Phi Sigma Kappa fraternity admitted to gluing several dozen of the cookies to the Oreo on Feb. 27.

Phi Sigma Kappa president Patrick Jacxsens said that the prank was not part of pledging but refused to comment as to whether the vandals were pledges.

While the exact price tag for repairing the damage is still unknown, the work is expected to be costly because glue seeped into the crevices of the statue. The black residue left by the cookies remains visible predominantly on the white sections of the artwork.

University officials do not know the amount of time it will take to fully repair the Oreo.

Chrissy Faistl, assistant director of Student Development for Greek Life, expressed her disappointment in the prank.

“I was hoping it was not a fraternity stunt,” she said. “I’m just glad they came forward when they did.”

Phi Sigma Kappa submitted a letter of apology to be printed in this week’s issue of The Villanovan. Fraternity members will also meet with Assistant Dean of Students Tom DeMarco to discuss disciplinary measures. In past incidences of vandalism, the University has punished students by requiring them to participate in some form of community service.

The pranksters will be required to pay for the restoration of the artwork.

Commenting on the intentions of the vandals, Faistl said, “The prank was not meant as something harmful, it was just a case of few young men simply not thinking.” She continued, “Unfortunately the glue really damaged the art work.”

Jeff Horton, director of Public Safety, said, “Initially I think students thought it was funny, but once they heard that it was going to be expensive to fix they did not.”

Robert Morro, executive director of the Office of Facilities Management, has to address the issue of vandalism on a regular basis because of the many pranks that occur each year.

“While we admire the students ingenuity in such cases we wish they’d use it in more positive ways,” he said.