Hazing Awareness and Prevention

View the Hazing Policy

Definitions

College Definition:

The term “hazing” refers to a reckless or intentional act that is an explicit or implicit condition for initiation to, admission into, affiliation with, participation in, participation in a leadership role, or continued membership in any group or organization. This includes activities either presented as optional or required regardless of consent.

1. Hazing is a broad term encompassing any action or activity, which does not contribute to the positive development of a person; which inflicts or intends to cause physical or mental harm or anxieties; and/or which demeans, degrades or disgraces any person regardless of location, intent or consent of participants.
2. Hazing includes any mental or physical requirement, request or obligation placed upon any person (pledge, new member, associate member, member, affiliate, guest), which could cause discomfort, pain, fright, disgrace, humiliation, embarrassment, injury or which is personally degrading or which violates any federal, state, local statute or college policy or rule. Any activity described in the definition of this Policy upon which the initiation, or admission into, or affiliation with, or continued membership in an organization is directly or indirectly conditional, shall be presumed to be “forced” activity.

State Definitions

State of Iowa Code 708.10 Hazing

State of Florida Code 1006.63

Three Components to Hazing:

CONSENT IS NOT A DEFENSE

Examples of Hazing Behaviors/Activities

1. Submission of members or prospective members to any activity and/or situation that a reasonable person would understand to be potentially dangerous or hazardous or which has a foreseeable potential for resulting in personal injury.
2. Any activity or situation that would have a potential to cause mental anxiety or distress and/or that would subject the individual to extreme mental stress
3. Public embarrassment – any action that causes embarrassment, humiliation, or ridicule, regardless of a person’s willingness to participate.
4. Forcing, requiring, coercing or pressuring individuals to engage in sexual behavior or sexual misconduct to include engagement and/or observance of forced sexual acts (whether real or simulated), stripping, streaking, flashing, suggestive dancing, etc.
5. Acts of physical violence which include beating, branding, electronic shocking, paddling, pinching, pushing, shoving, striking, tackling, tattooing, whipping, etc.
6. An activity which causes an individual to be indecently exposed or exposed to unsafe levels of cold or heat (i.e., participate in physical acts of exertion in extreme heat, sleeping outside, etc).
7. Having substances thrown at, poured on, or otherwise applied to the bodies of an individual. (i.e., food, liquid, garbage, paint, etc.)
8. Tests of Endurance
   1. Calisthenics
   2. Forced runs
   3. Forced workouts
9. Line ups – Acts where individuals are forced, coerced, or encouraged to line up in any formation, walk and/or march in a line or formation.
10. Blindfolding
11. Coercion of ingestion of any substance and/or pressuring the consumption of excessive amounts of food or beverages, including, but not limited to:
    1. Alcohol
    2. Drugs
    3. Condiments
    4. Food or liquids
    5. Tobacco
    6. Animals, alive or dead
    7. Other substances
12. Personal Servitude Activities –
    1. Cleaning
    2. Driving
    3. Running errands
    4. Being on call for members
13. Unusual Attire – wearing apparel which is conspicuous, embarrassing, and not normally in good taste, and/or inappropriate for the time of year.
14. Requiring Carrying of any items (paddles, bricks, rocks, pocket change, dog collars, signature books, etc.)
15. Depriving individuals of the opportunity for sufficient sleep (six hours of continuous sleep per day minimum), decent edible meals, or access to means of maintaining bodily cleanliness.
16. Conducting activities between the hours of 12:00 midnight and 7:00am. or awakening individuals during these hours.
17. Activities that interfere with a student’s educational pursuit, academic progress or academic performance to include, but are not limited to, activities that cause exhaustion, loss of sleep, or loss of reasonable study time or preventing an individual from attending class or other academic requirements.
18. Conducting unauthorized scavenger hunts, treasure hunts, quests, road trips, paddle hunts, big brother/little brother hunts, big sister/little sister hunts, “kidnapping” and/or transporting individuals against their will or abandoning individuals at distant locations.
19. Excluding an individual from social contact for prolonged periods of time, confining an individual to a small space and/or not permitting individuals to speak for extended periods of
20. Theft, defacement or destruction of College, public or private property.
21. Forcing, requiring or endorsing new members/associate members to violate any college policy or rule or any local, state or federal law.

Current Prevention Initiatives

New Student Orientation Training – Training each trimester for new incoming students.

Annual Awareness and Prevention Training – On-line annual training course on hazing awareness, prevention, intervention and the College’s Hazing policy that is completed by students and employees.

Student Leader Hazing Awareness and Prevention Training – Additional annual training required by all students that hold leadership positions in any of the College’s clubs and/or organizations.

Faculty Advisor for Clubs/Organizations Awareness and Prevention Training – Additional annual training required by all students that hold leadership positions in any of the College’s clubs and/or organizations.

Experience Palmer Event – Every trimester, information regarding hazing, prevention and bystander intervention is provided to the College community during the Experience Palmer event that is open to all students and employees.

Hazing Prevention Week – The College participates in the national Hazing Prevention Week that takes place every September by providing programming around hazing prevention, education and awareness for students and employees.

Any situation in which a person observes or hears about hazing and takes steps to support and/or prevent potential harm to those involved or to themselves is known as “bystander intervention” (Berkowitz, 2009; Stapleton & Allan, 2014).

The following 5 steps can help you become an empowered bystander.

1. Notice Hazing
   Once you understand the definition of hazing you will be better able to identify whether hazing could be occurring in a student club and/or organization. Please refer to the Hazing Definitions and Examples tab on this page to learn how to identify hazing.
2. Interpret the Behavior as a Problem
   Once you recognize hazing behavior it is important to acknowledge the behavior is problematic and needs to be addressed.
3. Accept Responsibility to Intervene
   Once hazing behavior has been recognized, individuals must accept personal responsibility for intervention.

   Diffusion of Responsibility – this occurs when individuals in a group setting do not take action because they believe someone else will intervene. This allows the hazing to continue even when members have identified the behaviors as wrong.

4. Intervening Safely
   1. Shift the focus – redirect attention from the person being hazed towards something else. (i.e., refuse to engage in the behavior, change the subject)
   2. Safely confronting – confronting the hazing directly by letting others know you will not participate in hazing. Encourage others to not participate and discourage those who are carrying out or planning the hazing behaviors)
   3. Shifting attitudes – de-normalize acts of hazing. (i.e., challenging misconceptions about “harmless” hazing behaviors and “traditions”, support those experiencing hazing)
   4. Documenting the behavior – report the hazing behavior with the College with Reporting Form.
5. Take Action
   After directly or indirectly taking action, check in on the affected parties and refer them to speak to the Office of Compliance regarding reporting information and available resources.

Below are positive strategies for achieving group unity.

As required by the Stop Campus Hazing Act, the College is required to publish a report of any hazing violations by any of the College’s student clubs and organizations.

The report must include:

• Name of the student club/organization
• Description of the violation
• Findings of the College
• Sanctions placed on the club/organization or students
• Date of the Incident
• Date Investigation initiated
• Date Investigation ended
• Date College notified club/organization of outcome

The report shall exclude all personal or identifying information of individual students and will adhere to the provisions of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). It must document all hazing violations occurring within the previous five-year period and be updated biannually.

The College also includes College hazing statistics in the College’s Annual Security and Fire Safety report.

Student Academic Support Services

External Resources:

National Anti-Hazing Hotline: (888) 668-4293 or (888) NOT-HAZE

https://stophazing.org/

https://hazingpreventionnetwork.org/state-hazing-laws/