Collins, King Join Bipartisan Legislation to Prevent Hazing on College Campuses

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Angus King have joined bipartisan legislation to prevent hazing on college campuses. The Stop Campus Hazing Act requires hazing incidents be included in a college's annual crime report and require higher education institutions to establish a campus-wide, research-based program to educate students about the dangers of hazing. The bill also increases transparency and accountability by providing parents and students with better information about which on-campus student organizations have a history of hazing incidents.

The National Study of Student Hazing found that more than half of college students involved in extracurricular clubs, athletic teams, and organizations experience hazing. Since 2000, there have been more than 50 hazing-related deaths. Hazing is a violation of the University of Maine System student conduct code and Maine State Law.

"Hazing is a harmful, far too common practice that puts students' well-being in danger - especially when the students feel like they don't have the ability to remove themselves from the situation," said Senators Collins and King in a joint statement. "The Stop Campus Hazing Act would force higher education institutions to educate and inform the campus community about safe practices and which organizations have a history of hazing. Students have a right to feel safe and accepted so that they can focus on their studies and fully participate in the college community. This bill would increase accountability and transparency as well as require colleges to take steps to help reduce these dangerous incidents."

"Passage of the Stop Campus Hazing Act will help campus leaders send a strong and clear message that student health, safety, and well-being are vital to achieving the goals of postsecondary education. The Stop Campus Hazing Act will strengthen campus hazing prevention through consistency and transparency in documenting incidents, and education about hazing and how to prevent it in colleges and universities. " -Dr. Elizabeth Allan - Professor of Higher Education at the University of Maine, Principal of StopHazing, Director of the Hazing Prevention Consortium.

The Stop Campus Hazing Act would:

• Improve hazing reporting by requiring colleges to include hazing incidents in their Annual Security Report;
• Prevent hazing by establishing campus-wide, research-based hazing education and prevention programs; and
• Help students and their parents make informed decisions about joining organizations on campus by requiring colleges to publish on their websites the institution's hazing prevention policies and the organizations that have violated them.

Collins and King were joined on this legislation by U.S. Senators Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Lindsay Graham (R-SC), Bob Casey (D-PA), Thom Tillis (R-NC), Tim Kaine (D-VA), Bob Casey (D-PA), Mark Kelly (D-AZ), James Lankford (R-OK), Jon Ossoff (D-GA), and Steve Daines (R-MT).

Senators Collins and King previously introduced the Report and Educate About Campus Hazing (REACH) Act which would require hazing incidents to be reported as part of a college's annual crime report and establish a definition of hazing to clarify what constitutes a reportable offense.

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