Hazing Education & Prevention

There are two key elements when an individual is attempting to become a member of, or maintain membership in a student organization:

1. Humiliating, degrading or endangering behavior
2. Happens regardless of an individual’s willingness to participate

Because of the socially coercive nature of hazing, implied or expressed consent is not a defense under this policy.

Hazing can occur unintentionally when there are power disparities – when one group or person can seemingly provide access to a desired outcome. Power dynamics can create an implicit pressure to participate. Examples of situations where power dynamics exist include, but are not limited to:

1. Between Active Members and Potential New Members (PNMs)
2. Between Active Members and New Members (this is not solved simply by immediately initiating new members)
3. Between Bigs and Littles
4. Between outgoing officers and incoming officers
5. Between Rookies and Returners
6. Between Starters and Substitutes

Presenting an event as optional does not change the power dynamics or the implicit pressure to participate. Events presented as “optional” can still be considered hazing. 

If you feel the need to present an activity or event as “optional” ask yourself why. If the reason is because some people could find the event humiliating, degrading, abusive, and/or endangering, that is a major sign that the event should not occur.

Examples of hazing include, but are not limited to:

• Forcing, coercing, or inducing the use of alcohol or an illegal substance
• Forcing, coercing, or inducing the consumption or use of any food, liquid, or other substance
• Physical abuse, e.g., whipping, paddling, beating, tattooing, branding, shaving and exposure to the elements, or the threat of such behaviors
• Forcing, coercing, or inducing nudity or the performance or simulation of sexual acts
• Threatening or causing physical restraint
• Throwing substances or objects at another person
• Assigning unreasonable chores or acts of servitude
• Causing excessive exercise, sleep deprivation or excessive fatigue
• Interfering with adequate time for study
• Requiring the wearing of apparel or acting in a way that is conspicuous and not within community norms
• Blindfolding
• Subjecting students to abusive or demeaning conduct
• Forcing, coercing, or inducing another to engage in conduct that involves a criminal violation of applicable law
• Forcing, coercing, or inducing another to engage in conduct that involves a violation of university policy

Start by making a list of all of your Group's events and activities. Then, review each event/activity using the following framework. 

1. List the goals of the event/activity - what are you trying to achieve?
2. Analyze the event/activity to identify any possible elements of hazing (see below).
3. If you identify any elements of hazing, modify the event/activity so that you still achieve the goals (identified in Step 1) while removing any problematic elements (identified in Step 2).

• Are members not supposed to talk about the event? What would happen if video footage of the event leaked?
• If the event is secretive, ask yourself why. If it is secretive to avoid getting into trouble, that is a major sign that you should not be engaging in that event. 

• Regardless of what you verbally tell people, the environment you set up can still create implicit pressures to participate. Some things to think about when determining whether or not there is an implicit pressure to participate:
  • Are there power dynamics? If yes, you should assume there is implicit pressure to participate.
  • Do people have to opt out of the activity rather than opt in?
  • If someone intervened and stopped this activity, would they lose social capital, status, or respect in the group?
  • If someone didn’t participate, would there be consequences (i.e. not fitting in, not being accepted into the group, not being invited to future social events etc.)?
• Presenting an event as optional does not change the power dynamics or the implicit pressure to participate. Events presented as “optional” can still be considered hazing.
  • If you feel the need to present an activity or event as “optional” ask yourself why. If the reason is because some people could find the event humiliating, degrading, abusive, and/or endangering, that is a major sign that the event should not occur.

• Explicit pressure is when someone is told they have to participate.
• If there is explicit pressure to participate then you need to make sure that the activity is not humiliating, degrading, abusive, and/or endangering. There also needs to be a justifiable reason for requiring participation that is directly related to the mission of your organization.
  • For example, a soccer team can require members to go to soccer practice, a fraternity cannot. A soccer team cannot require members to go to soccer practice at 2:00am. 

• If the activity is humiliating, degrading, abusive, or endangering, there must be no implicit or explicit pressure to participate.
• Consumption of controlled substances, including marijuana, and consumption of alcohol under 21 is against the law, therefore it is considered endangering. As a result, any event where there is implicit or explicit pressure to consume alcohol underage and/or to consume controlled substances is considered hazing. Be very cognizant of the power dynamics that exist between active members and new members at any event where alcohol and/or controlled substances are present.