/ Student Development

Hazing Policy

Hope College prohibits any and all forms of hazing as defined in federal and state laws and all relevant handbook policies.

As a community committed to our Christian Aspirations, we recognize that hazing:

  • Violates the dignity and worth of each person as an image bearer of God
  • Creates barriers for the enthusiastic and welcomed participation of each person
  • Disrupts opportunities for growth and transformation through participation in our teams, organizations and communities
Definitions

Hazing is defined by the following components:

  1. It is intentional, knowing or reckless action taken by a person (or a group of people) toward another person (or group of persons), regardless of the other person’s (or persons’) willingness to participate in the action.
  2. The action is taken as a requirement to:
    1. Be initiated into a group/organization
    2. Be affiliated with a group/organization
    3. Maintain membership in a group/organization
    4. Hold office in a group/organization
  3. The action creates physical, emotional or social risk (beyond reasonable physical risk for activities that are part of normal participation for an athletic team). 
Prohibited Behaviors

The prohibited activities can take many forms but are categorized as coercing, inducing or otherwise requiring the following:

  1. Physical Pain – includes activities that involve whipping, beating, striking, electric shocks or placing harmful substances on someone’s body.
  2. Physical Exertion – includes activities such as extreme calisthenics, sleep deprivation, confinement to a small space, exposure to the elements.
  3. Consuming Substances – includes consumption of alcohol, food, liquid, drugs or other substances.
  4. Sexual Acts – includes any acts that involve sexual activity.
  5. Threats – includes any acts that place some under reasonable fear of harm through the use of threatening words or actions.
  6. Restriction of Freedom – includes acts like kidnapping, unusual restrictions or compromise of moral or religious values.
  7. Criminal Activity – includes any acts that perpetrate a federal, state, local or tribal crime against someone or induce others to commit a federal, state, local, or tribal crime.
Training and Resources

Annual training regarding awareness and prevention of hazing will be provided to students, staff and faculty using research-informed curriculum. These campus-wide prevention programs will address definitions of hazing, bystander intervention, community implications of hazing and strategies to ethically foster group cohesion without hazing. Training components will include:

  • In-person sessions with relevant groups
  • Interactive online curriculum
  • Facilitated dialogue with group leaders

Additional information regarding Hope College’s hazing policies can be found at the following links:

Support and Reporting

Confidential support resources include:

Reports can be made by using the following link:

Legislation Regarding Hazing
  • In December 2024 the Stop Campus Hazing Act was signed into law. The law holds institutions of higher education accountable for their steps to prevent and respond to incidents of hazing. Institutions are required to: (1) clearly post their hazing prevention policies, (2) report on their prevention programing and training, as well as any hazing incidents in their annual Clery Report, and (3) publish an annual “Campus Hazing Transparency Report” that discloses any violations of the institution’s hazing policy.

  • In August 2004 the Michigan State Legislature enacted “Garret’s Law” (named for a middle school student who was injured in a “drill” during football practice). The law provides definitions for hazing activities and specifies criminal penalties for hazing convictions. Penalties include: (1) misdemeanors for incidents causing injury (imprisonment up to 93 days and/or fines up to $1,000), (2) felonies for incidents causing serious physical impairment (imprisonment up to five years and/or fines up to $2,500), and (3) felonies for incidents causing death (imprisonment up to 15 years and/or fines up to $10,000).

Final interpretation related to specific actions and/or potential violations will be determined by relevant college personnel.

Hope CollegeStudent Development

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