In May, the Louisiana Legislature passed a bill making hazing a crime. The bill, named after LSU freshman Max Gruver who died last fall after drinking with his fraternity, passed almost unanimously. National Hazing and Alcohol Prevention Week takes place the last week of September and includes a number of different activities.
ULM kicked off the week with a social media challenge. Yard signs with the statement “Hazing does not equal team unity” could be found in heavily trafficked areas on campus. Also on the signs were the hashtags #ULMCares and #HazingPrevention, which ULM organizations could take photos with in order to win a pizza party. Participation for the challenge lasted Monday-Friday, and the winner was announced on the ULM Student Life Instagram page.
On Tuesday, Student Affairs hosted a hazing prevention training seminar that was mandatory for all RSO officers and advisors.
Over 500 ULM students and faculty attended the event, which covered everything from the signs of hazing to what individual organizations on campus can do to combat this epidemic. Meagan Lee, coordinator of Student Life at ULM, said that all students are subject to the possibility of hazing while in college.
“It is ULM’s mission to create a safe, welcoming learning environment for all of its students and hazing does not contribute to that goal. It is our responsibility to protect our students and that begins with education,” Lee said.
The RSO officers and advisors will be using the information received from the seminar and applying that to their own specific organizations. Hence the name of the event, “Training the Trainers.”
The director of Student Life, Emily Essex, said that often times students may not even realize they have been the victim or perpetrator of hazing. “Hopefully, with this education we are providing, they will have a more clearer understanding of hazing and its consequences,” Essex said.
Lieutenant Jeremy Kent went over what happens when a hazing crime is reported. He discussed the proper procedures to follow and went into detail about how the UPD is trained to help in situations like that of hazing.
Giveaways took place in the Quad, provided by ULM Student Life and Leadership. Students grabbed hazing prevention and alcohol awareness buttons, wrist bands with the phrase, “these hands don’t haze” and drink koozies throughout the week.
“I was already headed to the library, so I thought I would stop by,” said senior graphic design major, Charles Hollis. When asked about the importance of hazing prevention and alcohol awareness, Hollis said, “This is college and things like that do happen. Educating students on the dangers of hazing and alcohol can help to fix that.”
ULM’s hazing prevention education team has new ideas to implement that could help combat the problem of hazing. For instance, a required online training course is something ULM is working on, as well as a proposed elective course on prevention education.
All information from the hazing prevention training seminar will be compiled and added to the official Student Life section of the ULM website for students and the public to read.