Hazing Prevention

• whipping, beating, striking, electronic shocking, placing of a harmful substance on someone’s body, or similar activity; 
• causing, coercing, or otherwise inducing sleep deprivation, exposure to the elements, confinement in a small space, extreme calisthenics, or other similar activity; 
• causing, coercing, or otherwise inducing another person to consume food, liquid, alcohol, drugs, or other substances; 
• causing, coercing, or otherwise inducing another person to perform sexual acts; 
• any activity that places another person in reasonable fear of bodily harm through the use of threatening words or conduct; 
• any activity against another person that includes a criminal violation of local, State, Tribal, or Federal law; and 
• any activity that induces, causes, or requires another person to perform a duty or task that involves a criminal violation of local, State, Tribal, or Federal law. 

Under Maryland Anti-Hazing Law hazing is defined as:  

1. A person may not recklessly or intentionally do an act or create a situation that subjects a student to the risk of serious bodily injury for the purpose of an initiation into a student organization of a school, college, or university. 
2. A person who violates this section is guilty of a misdemeanor and on conviction is subject to imprisonment not exceeding 6 months or a fine not exceeding $500 or both. 
3. The implied or express consent of a student to hazing is not a defense under this section. 
   

Procedures for Reporting and Investigating Hazing

Reporting Hazing

Stevenson University believes that all members of the Stevenson community have the right to be free from acts of hazing. All members of the Stevenson community are expected to report any cases of suspected or confirmed hazing to the Office of Student Conduct (Ratcliffe Community Center, studentconduct@stevenson.edu, (443) 352-4017). Reports can be submitted directly to the Office of Student Conduct using the Hazing Reporting Form. Hazing can also be reported directly to the Office of Campus Safety (Ratcliffe Community Center, sec-om@stevenson.edu, (443) 352-4500) or by using the University’s Anonymous Reporting Form. All other reporting options can be found on the University website by visiting this link: https://www.stevenson.edu/about/consumer-information/student-complaint-resolution/.

Hazing Investigations

Initial review of reported allegations of hazing

Upon receipt of a report alleging hazing, the Office of Student Conduct (or designee) will promptly review the report to determine if the alleged violation meets the definition of hazing. If the report meets the definition of hazing under this policy, the Office of Student Conduct will initiate an investigation within five business days of receiving the report.

Notice of Allegations

The Office of Student Conduct (or designee) will select the members of the alleged organization who are to be interviewed. Those members will be notified in writing that an alleged hazing incident has been report to the Office of Student Conduct. The written notice will include the time and location of their interview. This written notification will be issued on the date the interviews are scheduled.

Interviews

Interviews will be completed by an official from the Office of Student Conduct (or designee). All decisions regarding the nature of the interviews, including whether to meet in person, by phone, or via video-conferencing, the number of witnesses, the order in which witnesses will be heard, the length of the interviews, any procedural and logistical matters, and what information is reasonably necessary for reaching a fair decision, are within the discretion of the Office of Student Conduct (or designee). University hazing investigations and adjudications are not required to follow federal or State rules of evidence. Any interviews completed during hazing investigations will not be recorded by representatives from Stevenson and shall not be recorded by other person being interviewed. Any party permitted to be present may take notes. All interviews to be conducted by the university as a part of a hazing investigation shall include only the university official and the person to be interviewed. No other person or persons is allowed to be present during the interview of a party or witness. This includes but is not limited to parents, friends, attorneys, lawyers, other students, etc. The interviews are closed to the public.

All persons interviewed during a hazing investigation are required, at all times, to provide truthful information. Any person who does not is in violation of will be disciplined under applicable university policies.

In the case where multiple person are interviewed simultaneously (for example in the case of student organizations) all members to be interviewed will be gathered in one space and the Office of Student Conduct (or designee) will explain the interview process. Interviewers will be selected by the Office of Student Conduct (or designee) but are generally conducted by members of the Division of Student Affairs. Each interviewer will take detailed notes, which will be shared with the Office of Student Conduct (or designee). To protect the integrity of organization or group interviews, organization members will be instructed to refrain from using any electronic devices and/or communicate with each other in any way until after all interviews have been completed.

Gathering and Review of Evidence

The Office of Student Conduct (or designee) will gather and review all relevant evidence, including but not limited to interview notes, video footage, web content, social media posts, photos, and videos. Based on this review, additional interviews may be scheduled.

Determination

Once all relevant evidence has been collected and reviewed, the Office of Student Conduct (or designee) will determine whether or not the accused person or persons have violated the university hazing policy. All determinations will be made using a Preponderance of Evidence standard (i.e. more likely than not).

Sanctions

If hazing is determined to have occurred, the Office of Student Conduct (or designee) will issue appropriate sanctions. Sanctions for the organizations may include, but are not limited to, educational programs pertaining to hazing prevention, restriction on accepting new members, suspension of group recognition, and permanent loss of group recognition.

If an individual student is accused of violating University policy, they will be notified of the alleged violations and a Disciplinary Conference will be scheduled by the procedures outlined in the Student Conduct Process section of the Office of Student Conduct website. Sanctions for students found responsible for violating University policies may include, but are not limited to, educational requirements, suspension from a club or organization, permanent removal from a club or organization, disciplinary probation, removal from University housing, suspension from the University, and expulsion from the University. Students found responsible for hazing at Stevenson may also be subject to violations under the Maryland Anti-Hazing Law (§ 3-607), and may be subject to imprisonment not exceeding six months or a fine not exceeding $500 or both.

Notification

The Office of Student Conduct (or designee) will notify the organization members in writing of the decision and any imposed sanction(s). The notice will usually be proved within five business days of the decision.

Appeals

The decision made by the Office of Student Conduct (or designee) for a violation of hazing may be appealed by the organization under the guidelines below. An appeal is a review of the submitted appeal and the relevant case records. An appeal may be dismissed if not sought on proper grounds. Appeals under these guidelines are only for organizations. Students wishing to appeal an individual conduct case decision should follow the appeal process outlined in the Student Conduct Process section of the Office of Student Conduct website.

• Right to Appeal: A request for an appeal must be submitted in writing to the Office of Student Conduct within five business days of the decision. The Office of Student Conduct will forward the appeal to the correct appeal hearing officer. If an organization chooses to appeal, the written appeal must be submitted using the online “Organization Conduct Appeal Form”.
• Grounds for Appeal: The written request for an appeal must be based upon one or more of the following grounds, and there are no other grounds for appeal;
  • A procedural error that significantly impacted the final decision;
  • Previously unavailable, substantive, and relevant information that could materially impact the final decision; and
  • The sanctions or discipline imposed are substantially disproportionate for the facts of the case for the violation that was found to have occurred.
• Procedure for Appeal: Appeals will be sent to the Vice President for Student Affairs. If the Vice President for Student Affairs determines that the appeal is eligible to be heard, they will decide whether to hear it themselves or refer it to the University Hearing Board. If the University Hearing Board is assigned the appeal, the process will follow the guidelines outlined in the Student Conduct Process section of the Office of Student Conduct website. The case will be considered closed when (1) the Vice President for Student Affairs determines that no appeal is permitted, or (2) the Vice President for Student Affairs or the University Hearing Board hears the appeal and makes a decision.

Determination of Appeal: The organization will be notified in writing of the decision by the appeal hearing officer, along with any changes to the outcome. That decision will usually be provided to the organization via email within five business days after the appeal is submitted. However, the appeal hearing officer has the discretion to extend this time in cases for which, in their judgement, it is warranted; including but not limited to cases that are complicated or otherwise unusual.

(Approved September 2025)