In October, Virginia Senator Tim Kaine announced that he had cosponsored the Stop Campus Hazing Act (SCHA), a bipartisan bill designed to require institutions of higher education to report hazing incidents.
Hazing is typically defined as “any intentional, knowing, or reckless act committed by a person, whether individually or in concert with other persons, against a student regardless of that student’s willingness to participate.” It’s an issue many college campuses face not only in Greek organizations but also sports teams, extracurricular clubs, or any student organization. A bigger problem arises not just from the action of hazing, but people’s lack of knowledge about it and how often it occurs.
According to the National Study of Student Hazing, 55% of college students involved in a club or organization experience hazing. These experiences not only include alcohol consumption, but also humiliation, isolation, sleep-deprivation, and even sexual acts. Because of how harmful, and sometimes deadly, hazing can be, it’s important for proper education and strict rules be implemented to protect the lives of college students.
The SCHA would require institutions of higher education to report hazing incidents. This would include disclosing these incidents in the college’s Annual Security Reports, establishing campus-wide hazing education and prevention programs, and publishing their hazing policies along with organizations that have violated them. According to a press release sent from Kaine’s office, the SCHA will “provide [students] with the information they need to decide which college to attend and organizations to join.”
At the time of publication, the SCHA is currently supported by members of both parties in Congress. The bill is cosponsored by 7 Senators and 25 Representatives, a higher number than most bills that are introduced in Congress.
Representative Bob Good (R-VA-05), whose district encompasses Farmville Longwood University, said in an email statement to The Rotunda, “Students ought to be able to succeed and maintain participation in athletics, clubs, and other campus activities without jeopardizing their safety or wellbeing. As a former college athlete, I desire to see students everywhere flourish without being subjected to hazing.” At the time of publication, Good has not cosponsored the bill. Furthermore, The Rotunda reached out to the office of Virginia Senator Mark Warner (D), which has not responded to the request for comment. Warner has also not yet cosponsored the bill.
Similar legislation to the SCHA, known as Adam’s Law, was nearly-unanimously passed in Virginia last year. Adam’s Law requires universities to publish the names of student organizations that violate the code of conduct each semester, and students must attend in-person training sessions to educate themselves on hazing and proper prevention methods. It was named after Adam Oakes, a student at Virginia Commonwealth University who died of alcohol poisoning during an event with Delta Chi. His father, Eric Oakes, has advocated for hazing prevention legislation since.
The SCHA follows the Reporting and Educating About Campus Hazing Act and the End All Hazing Act, both of which previously failed to pass in Congress. Combining the ideas of the previous two, this new bill already received support from organizations such as the North American Interfraternity Conference.
