31 days of hazing headlines

High-profile hazing incidents in 17 states during October reflect the dangerous culture of hazing that is still widespread across the US

Is hazing really still a problem?

That’s a frequent question from students, parents, and even some campus administrators who may consider hazing an unfortunate but rare occurrence unlikely to affect them.

A review of hazing news reports from October 2024 reveals that hazing hit the headlines 23 times in locations across the United States. Our review of 31 days of hazing in the news reveals that hazing was reported in:

• 17 states.
• 10 colleges and universities.
• 7 high schools.
• 2 workplaces.
  

This is what hazing looks like in 2024.

Greek organizations are most named as hazing offenders

At least 14 fraternities and two sororities in nine states were linked to hazing in October news reports. A few examples:

• Syracuse University in New York suspended Psi Upsilon and Phi Kappa Psi fraternities for hazing caught on videotape that campus officials labeled “repugnant.”
• Police searched Kappa Sigma fraternity at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga after two members were hospitalized with burns during alleged hazing.
• A former freshman at Coastal Carolina University in South Carolina filed a lawsuit alleging he was shot with BB and pellet guns for answering questions incorrectly at a mandatory event at Alpha Chi Rho fraternity. He was struck in the head and body multiple times.
• At Marshall University in West Virginia, three Greek organizations are temporarily suspended amid an investigation into two separate hazing incidents, including allegations of sexual misconduct, alcohol abuse, and humiliation. The suspended organizations are Alpha Sigma Phi and Alpha Tau Omega fraternities and Alpha Xi Delta sorority.

Other hazing incidents were reported at Pennsylvania State University (Phi Kappa Sigma and Sigma Chi fraternities and multiple other student organizations); Dartmouth College in New Hampshire (Beta Alpha Omega fraternity and Alpha Phi sorority); University of Alabama (Pi Kappa Phi fraternity); Michigan State University (Lambda Phi Epsilon fraternity); and University of Oklahoma (Phi Gamma Delta fraternity).

High school athletes, coaches linked to hazing

Eight high schools in seven states made headlines in October for alleged hazing.

Santa Fe High School in New Mexico is investigating an alleged hazing incident involving football players that includes accusations of a sexual offense.

Seven football players at Lisbon High School in Maine were suspended from the program following a hazing investigation. Lisbon Police are also investigating a second hazing incident involving the team.

In New York, the junior varsity football season was canceled after three teens were arrested for sexually abusing a teammate in an apparent hazing incident at James Madison High School.

Nine students were arrested at Farmersville High School in Texas following a locker room hazing incident that involved at least three victims.

Other reported hazing episodes occurred at Massillon Washington High School in Ohio; Newburgh Free Academy in New York; Rochester High School in Illinois; and Patriot High School in Virginia.

In addition, one college athletic program made the news for hazing. A former basketball player at the New Mexico State University accepted a plea deal following allegations of sexual hazing of teammates that led to criminal charges against three players and the head coach’s firing in 2023.

Hazing in law enforcement

Two instances of alleged workplace hazing spanning both coasts were reported in October.

A hazing investigation continues into the death of a 25-year-old Massachusetts State Police trainee after a boxing exercise at the policy academy. Other police recruits have described their experiences there as “pure hell and torture.”

At the Los Angeles Police Department, new hires experience a culture of hazing on the job, including being required to shave their heads or being forbidden to speak unless spoken to, according to a new report by the department’s inspector general.

Most hazing is never reported

These are just the incidents we know about in the month of October — hazing that was sensational enough to make the headlines.

Most hazing is never reported. Among students who identify as having been hazed, 95 percent did not report the event to campus authorities, according to the seminal National Study of Student Hazing.

The shocking headlines continue this month. Last week, the University of Iowa suspended Alpha Delta Phi fraternity week after police responded to a fire alarm and discovered 56 pledges in the basement who had been blindfolded and had food thrown at them.

Is hazing really still a problem? The facts are clear: Hazing remains a clear and present danger on college and high school campuses and workplaces nationwide.

Learn more about hazing incidents by using our Campus Lookup feature to explore hazing on your college campus.