Date Created:  February 2, 2024              Last Updated:  May 30, 2024

Overview:

Over 1,000 Registered Student Organizations recognized by Cornell University are educated about hazing prevention education and the 73,000 student members (many students are members of multiple groups) in over 1,000 organizations are held accountable for their hazing related behaviors. Organization leadership is required to familiarize with the Big Red Guidebook and register their organization annually. Members of all organizations are invited to self-enroll in the Skorton Center’s online training: How to Recognize and Respond to Hazing and are highly encouraged to attend National Hazing Prevention Week activities organized by Sorority and Fraternity Life. Prevention education and opportunities for involvement are geared towards safety and community standards expected of all campus individuals and groups. Trainings provide education around the disciplinary process should there be an active investigation following a hazing report and the consequences for not complying with mandated sanctions set by the Student Code of Conduct, National Organization Headquarters and/or their Cornell recognized organization. The Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards, in collaboration with Campus and Community Engagement, manages appropriate follow up for non-compliance.

Criticality: High

Frequency: Other

Turnaround: Other

Key Parties / Contacts:

Campus and Community Engagement; Campus Activities Staff: Responsible for offering training resources and coordinating logistics with the organization’s leadership team to provide training. Monitors and oversees completion statuses in Campus Groups. Sets and monitors expectations for advisors and organization leadership. Meets with the Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards to review and manage post-incident sanction completion and behavior mitigation. Provides resource information to organizations and individual members in need of support.

Advisors: Responsible for setting expectations and monitors around organization and individual behavior. Submit referrals via the University’s Hazing website (www.hazing.cornell.edu) and/or to Student Conduct and Community Standards.

Student Conduct and Community Standards: Investigates hazing reports and manages hearings then delivers and monitors sanction completion. Notifies National Organization Headquarters, as needed. Reports criminal behaviors to law enforcement.

Skorton Center for Health Initiatives: Provides institutional leadership on hazing prevention strategies (e.g., Cornell's Hazing Prevention Model), delivers prevention focused educational trainings to students and employees on hazing, bystander intervention and how to recognize and respond to hazing , manages the University’s hazing.cornell.edu website, collaboratively implements communication strategies and campaigns about hazing prevention, conducts research on students’ knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors related to hazing among Cornell students, uses data driven-strategies to address hazing, and participates in public engagement and collaborative opportunities with national hazing prevention organizations and universities across the country to address hazing. The Skorton Center also collaborates with the Office of Sorority and Fraternity Life to provide educational trainings on hazing and bystander intervention education (e.g., Intervene, How to Recognize and Respond to Hazing).

Key Documents / Sources of Information:

 

System Access Needed:

  • CampusGroups
  • Campus Kaizen Guardian
  • Canvas

Common Problems or Issues Encountered:

  • Organizational and individual behaviors around identifying and responding to hazing behaviors comprehension of training materials and available resources will vary per individual.
  • Advisors’ knowledge, attitudes toward hazing practices, and familiarity with Cornell’s definition of hazing and the Student Code of Conduct policy vary per individual. Education about hazing and how to recognize and respond to it is not required of advisors.
  • Organizational and individual behaviors may be influenced based on the training focus and expectations set by their advisor.
  • Educational trainings on hazing, bystander intervention, and culture change strategies including positive group team building (that does not involve hazing) are not tied to eligibility to join groups, teams, or organizations or serve in leadership positions within a registered student organization.
  • Advisors strategize and use discretion of when and where to refer organizational and individual behaviors to the Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards.
  • The advisor is chosen by the Campus and Community Engagement and is subject to change.
  • Violations of the Student Code of Conduct may result in loss of recognition and the inability of the organization to acquire funding, host events, and qualify for club insurance, but investigations may not result in an identification of involved individuals. When this occurs, individual offenders are permitted to remain on campus and may repeat behavior.
  • Collusion, resulting in inappropriate disclosure of information between those who have been hazed and perpetrators of hazing, may occur during the investigation.

Step by Step Procedures:

 

Education/Prevention:

1.       Officers submits Officer and Advisor form.

2.       Officer and Advisor form is generated.

3.       President, VP, Treasurer, Advisor each complete form, including "quiz" and attestation.

4.       Completion reports are generated out of CampusGroups & monitored by Campus Activities staff.

5.       Members are expected to familiarize with The Big Red Guidebook, which includes information and resources related to hazing.

6.       Organizations are sent details and highly encouraged to attend National Hazing Prevention Week activities held annually in September (organized by Sorority and Fraternity Life).

7.       Organization Leadership, Advisors, and Campus Activities Staff members monitor organizational and individual behavior and provide resources as needed.

8.       Allegations against group, team, organization and/or individual are reported to campus authorities.

9.       OSCCS provides data analytics with Student Activities

Adjudication:

1.       Intake report is received by OSCCS.

2.       Assessment and next steps determined by OSCCS and Involved Parties.

3.       When warranted, incident is reported to National Organization Headquarters to be handled externally concurrently with campus and/or legal sanctioning.

4.       Incident is resolved through formal complaint, alternate dispute resolution or dismissed.

5.       OSCCS provides written description of incident outcome to Skorton Center, who posts the summary to https://hazing.cornell.edu/violations

6.       Criminal behavior is reported to law enforcement for external proceedings, concurrently with campus sanctioning.

Accountability:

  • National Organization may impose sanctions and/or fines may be imposed.
  • Cornell sanctioning by OSCCS.
  • Criminal behavior managed externally by law enforcement.
  • Loss of university recognition, funding, and ability to host events.
  • Individual(s) may be removed from organization and/or campus.

 

Key Risks

Key Controls

Hazing prevention education is available but not all opportunities for engagement are required.

1.       Participation in National Hazing Prevention Week is encouraged but not required.

2.       The Skorton Center for Health Initiatives offers in-person and online training options for student organizations. For example, for Spring 2024 there is an online training currently programmed in Canvas  called “How to Recognize and respond to Hazing”. It uses a self-enrollment link so anyone with a Cornell net id can self-enroll into the training. The Skorton Center also delivers in-person trainings on hazing and bystander intervention (e.g., How to Recognize and Respond to Hazing, Intervene)

Advisors strategize and use discretion of when and where to address organization and individual behaviors.

1.       Reported allegations are handled centrally by the Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards, separately from organization expectations and enforcement.

Annual registration is required and includes education around hazing and an attestation, but completion is only required for leadership.

1.       All organizations must register annually.

2.       Leadership must pass an educational quiz to move registration to approval phase.

Collusion during an investigation

1.       Confidential and anonymous reporting is available through Campus Kaizen Guardian or the Cornell Ethics and Compliance Hotline.

2.       OSCCS uses different investigative strategies to reduce the risk of collusion during an investigation.

Loss of reputation to student organization and/or to Cornell University.

1.       Violations are posted on Cornell University’s hazing.cornell.edu website in an effort to show transparency of violations and allow people to research the organizations they are interested in joining.

2.       Cornell’s Hazing Prevention Model is a visible commitment to addressing hazing and serves as a guiding framework for universities across the United States.

Metrics:

  • Campus Activities to track hazing prevention education completion against leadership, advisor, and member rosters.
  • Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards track # of reported allegations with their outcomes.
  • Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards track recidivism.
  • The Skorton Center for Health Initiatives administers surveys to assess students’ knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors related to hazing.

Glossary of Key Terms/Acronyms:

  • OSCCS: Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards
  • MC: Mitigating Control

Between  2001  and  2015,  Cornell  University  developed  a  comprehensive  (i.e.  multi-component) public health hazing prevention model that addresses  individuals,  organizations,  and  the  broader  environment.  This model includes eight elements: leadership and  culture  change  strategies;  policy  initiatives;  educational  initiatives;  positive  team-building;  reporting  options;  enforcement;  support  for  victims;  and  transparency  regarding  violations.  For more information visit www.hazing.cornell.edu

Process flow chart:

Misconduct Case Management - Formal Complaint

Misconduct Case Management - Dismissal by OSCCS of Formal Complaint

Misconduct Case Management - Alternate Resolution for Formal Complaint

Misconduct Case Management - Alternate Dispute Resolution if no Formal Complaint

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