Four former students were charged last week with vandalizing the car of an ex-pledge after the student filed a complaint about their sorority hazing.
The incident brought up questions about Ball State's hazing policy and what the university is doing to prevent it.
The student filed the initial hazing complaint against Zeta Phi Beta, of the National Pan-Hellenic Council, in December 2011. The complaint surrounded activities such as sleep deprivation and servitude for other members, Lynda Wiley, associate vice president for Student Affairs, said.
Hazing at Ball State is prohibited, as listed in the Code of Student Rights and Responsibilities. The code defines hazing as "any mental or physical requirement, request or obligation placed upon any person." The code also says hazing is defined as being harmful to the health or welfare of the person, being personally degrading, having an adverse effect on the academic progress of the person or violates any laws or university policy.
The code also states if a person accepts the activity, it does not validate or excuse it.
Hazing is an infrequent occurrence at Ball State, said Mike Gillilan, director of Student Rights and Community Standards.
Gillilan added he has only been involved in the investigation of three hazing cases in the two years he has worked for the university.
"It's not something that comes up very often, but because it's a serious issue, we take it very seriously," Gillilan said.
Wiley said the Office of Student Affairs provides education with new greek members to make sure they know what to recognize in terms of hazing and who to tell if something occurs. Each individual organization is required by its national headquarters to provide some type of hazing and risk management education, she added.
Gillilan said the greek community does a lot of training and programming about hazing.
"This is an issue with any kind of group, whether it's a formal or an informal one," Gillilan said. "Greek life especially is very diligent about working with greek organizations and other organizations in regards to risk management - and one issue in risk management is certainly hazing."
Every new greek member has to sign a new member reporting form. This form states that the new member understands that hazing is not allowed and that if they are involved in a hazing situation or see any hazing situation, they will report it to the appropriate person.
"When our members join, they know right away that that is something that is not tolerated and it is not something that is a healthy or a safe behavior for our students to be participating in," Brandon Cutler, assistant director of the Office of Student Life, said.
Ball State's greek community will also participate in National Hazing Prevention Week the last week in September.
On Sept. 25, the greek community will hand out cards and ask students to sign them for a pledge card campaign.
The event is aimed to help raise awareness about what kinds of activities would fall under the umbrella of what hazing is.
"A lot of times, we talk about hazing and it gets lost what hazing really is," Cutler said.
There will also be a showing of the movie 2010 "Brotherhood," which is about hazing on a college campus. There will be a discussion afterward.
On Sept. 27, Zach Nicolazzo will speak on campus. Cutler said the discussion will focus on the gender dynamics behind hazing and the similarities and differences between males and females who haze.
These events are open to all students.
Although hazing investigations do not happen very often at Ball State, Wiley said the university follows up on any complaint it receives.
This investigation includes interviews with advisers, any individuals who may have been involved and members of the fraternity or sorority involved. The university also examines any email, Facebook pages or Twitter accounts that would provide more information.
In the case with Zeta Phi Beta, Wiley said the university conducted an investigation under this protocol and could not find enough evidence to substantiate the hazing claims.
During these investigations, the Office of Student Life, which looks at the organization as a whole, works closely with the Office of Student Rights and Community Standards, which looks at the individuals involved.
If the organization is found to have committed hazing, Wiley said the Office of Student Life tries to be consistent but it looks at the investigations on a case-by-case basis.
Because of this, the disciplinary action that follows ranges from probation with educational programs to complete suspension from campus.
Once the individual's investigation is concluded and if the student has been charged, Gillilan said they would have the opportunity to accept responsibility or request a hearing. If the student was found responsible, they would be sanctioned.
Gillilan said there are several considerations when sanctioning a student. These include the nature and severity of the incident, the university's past precedent and the student's prior record.
The disciplinary action that would follow for the individuals involved range from a written warning to suspension or expulsion from the university.
If the hazing has involved criminal activity, police will get involved as well.
Cutler said it is important to remember that hazing is not just a fraternity and sorority issue.
"It impacts the entire campus community," Cutler said. "We want to help raise awareness and help people understand how hazing impacts young people, why it's a negative activity, why it's something we want to make sure it isn't something that impacts our students at Ball State."
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