National Hazing Prevention Week brought to Frostburg

September 21 through September 25 was National Hazing Prevention Week. With a plethora of different fraternities and sororities on campus, hazing prevention and awareness is incredibly important at Frostburg. The most recent hazing incident took place at the University of Central Arkansas’ Alpha Sigma Tau chapter. New members of Alpha Sigma Tau national sorority were demanded to do pushups by a member of Sigma Tau Gamma, a national fraternity, while upper class members of the sorority encouraged their new members to listen and perform the pushups. With hazing incidents constantly in the public eye, a week like this is needed on Frostburg’s campus where the Greek community is growing.

Greek life is mostly portrayed as an awful thing by the media, but the fact of the matter is most Greek organizations are not hazing. Stophazing.com did a study that shows “55% of college students involved in clubs, teams, and organizations experience hazing.” This statistic is not limited to Greek organizations; many forget that hazing has happened on sports teams and with school bands as well.

Frostburg has a strict policy on hazing and requires every member of a Greek organization to attend an anti-hazing program. Below is what Frostburg outlines as hazing:
“The University considers hazing, as defined below, to be indefensible and contrary to the interests of the university community. Hazing is defined, for purposes of this section, as
(1) any activity or action which subtly, flagrantly or deliberately demeans, embarrasses, threatens, invites ridicule or draws inappropriate or negative attention to a member, and/or an attitude which implies one member is superior to another or that initiation must be earned through personal services or meaningless activities for initiated members; and/or (2) actions which result in the impairment of academic performance or of the proper fulfillment of obligations to university sponsored groups; and/or (3) retaliation or threats of retaliation against persons reporting acts prohibited by this section. Any violation of the University’s Hazing Policy will be considered a violation of this section.”

There only 44 states with anti-hazing laws, with Maryland being one of those states. Maryland’s laws are as follows: (a) Prohibited. — A person may not recklessly or intentionally do an act or create a situation that subjects a student to the risk of serious bodily injury for the purpose of an initiation into a student organization of a school, college, or university. (b) Penalty. — A person who violates this section is guilty of a misdemeanor and on conviction is subject to imprisonment not exceeding 6 months or a fine not exceeding $500 or both. (c) Prohibited defense. — The implied or express consent of a student to hazing is not a defense under this section.

Nicole Amos, Greek Council standards chairman and Alpha Sigma Alpha sister, had the task of planning events to raise awareness for hazing prevention and awareness. The events ranged from information tables focusing on the consequences of hazing to a bake sale raising money for hazing prevention. On Friday, September 25th, members of Greek organizations showed their unity against hazing by wearing red.

Student and president of Phi Mu Delta national fraternity Samuel Lohff stated, “Hazing Prevention is one of the most important things to our fraternity as a whole and each of us individually. What I always tell people is that, if I am willing to call someone my brother, why would I want to treat them like a second class citizen, or haze them…they are my brother!” This statement speaks volumes about on campus Greek life at Frostburg.

If you or someone you know is in immediate danger due to hazing, call 911. If you want to report a hazing incident or are suspicious of an incident, please contact campus police. Another available resource is the anti-hazing hotline, which can be reached at 1-888-NOT-HAZE or 1-888-668-4293.