Anti-Hazing

Anti-Hazing Policy Statement

North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University (“N.C. A&T” or “University”) prohibits hazing, solicitation to engage in hazing, and any conduct that aids, abets, assists, or supports another in hazing.

Hazing Definition

Under North Carolina law means to subject another student to physical injury as part of an initiation, or as a prerequisite to membership, into any organized school group, including any society, athletic team, fraternity or sorority, or other similar group.” NC A&T further defines hazing to mean any intentional, knowing, or reckless act committed by a person (whether individually or in concert with other persons against another person or persons regardless of willingness to participate, that is committed in the course of an initiation into, an affiliation with, or the maintenance of a membership, in a student organization (e.g. club, athletic team, fraternity, or sorority); and causes or creates a risk above the reasonable risk encountered in the course of participation in the institution of higher education or organization, of physical or psychological injury.

Types of Hazing

Generational Hazing

Usually occurs when graduates or other members of a group or organization come back to relive their college days and justifies hazing through stories about how it was “back in the day” and how it made the individual a “real” member of the group or team. Generational hazing consistently talks about being made “the right way.”

Subtle Hazing

Subtle hazing typically involves activities or attitudes that breach reasonable standards of mutual respect and appropriate standards, and places the individual on the receiving end of ridicule and/or humiliation (e.g., assigning meaningless or impossible tasks, requiring new members or interested individuals to perform demeaning tasks not assigned to other members, socially isolating individuals, name calling, expecting certain items to always be in someone’s possession or required carrying of certain items, and sleep deprivation).

Physical Exhaustion Hazing

Physical exhaustion hazing usually involves some type of physical activity that subjects a student (whether a member, someone trying to become a member, or someone engaged to participate in the act) to an unreasonable risk of harm or that adversely affects the mental or physical health or safety of the student y (e.g., sleep deprivation, exposure to the elements, confinement in a small space, forced or coerced calisthenics or physical drills, or other similar activity)

Physical or Violent Hazing

Physical or violent hazing usually involves some type of physical contact that has the potential to cause physical, emotional, and/or psychological harm or death. Physical hazing is the most publicized type of hazing (e.g., shoving and pushing, paddling or “taking wood,” whipping, striking, punching, electric shocking, coerced or forced sexual activity or nudity, capturing or kidnapping, confinement, forced consumption of food, alcohol, drugs, or gross foods, branding, cutting, labeling, or shaving parts of the body, exposure to the elements or extreme conditions, placing a harmful substance on the body or similar activity, and being placed in dangerous situations or facilities)

Consumption Hazing

Consumption hazing usually involves some type of forced or coerced consumption of food, liquids, alcoholic beverages, liquor, drugs, insects, “gross foods,” undesirable substances, spoiled food, unusual food combinations, or other substance to excess, or which subjects the student to an unreasonable risk of harm or adversely affects the mental or physical health of the student. Consumption of alcohol and drugs is a very popular and dangerous form of hazing

Coercive Behavior

Coercive behavior hazing usually happens as an explicit or implicit condition for initiation to, admission into, affiliation with, or continued membership in a group or organization. Coercive hazing tends to or is intended to demean, disgrace, humiliate or degrade a student (e.g., forced conduct that could result in extreme embarrassment or adversely affect the mental health or dignity of a student, scavenger hunts in isolated areas, and personal servitude)

Mental or Emotional Hazing

Mental or emotional hazing usually involves activity that a reasonable person would believe intimidates or threatens with ostracism, subjects an individual to extreme mental stress, shame, humiliation, adversely affects the mental health or dignity of an individual, discourages an individual from entering or remaining registered in an educational institution, may reasonably be expected to cause the student to forego obtaining membership in an organization, or leave the organization or the institution rather than submit to the activity (e.g., yelling, demeaning name calling, profane remarks, forced drills, threats, silence, isolation, being singled out for demeaning duties not assigned to others, running errands, or carrying out other types of servitude)

Harassment Hazing

Harassment hazing involves action that confuses, frustrates, and causes undue stress, or has the potential to cause emotional anguish and/or physical discomfort (e.g., cyberbullying, stalking, yelling or screaming, personal servitude, requirement for wearing embarrassing or uncomfortable clothing or items, assigning pranks such as stealing, removing, or painting objects, confinement, capture or kidnapping, being dropped off somewhere and forced to find the way back, isolation, and forced or coerced nudity or sexual activity)

Cyber-Bullying

involves communications made through e-mails, cell phones, website's and/or other social media to intimidate, control, manipulate, stalk, torment, harass, ridicule, put down, falsely discredit, and/or humiliate a person or group. N.C. Gen. Stat. § 14-458.1.