ERIC Number: EJ1042002
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2014
Pages: 5
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0009-8655
EISSN: N/A
Hazing in Public Schools: A Liability Challenge for School Leaders
Essex, Nathan L.
Clearing House: A Journal of Educational Strategies, Issues and Ideas, v87 n6 p236-240 2014
Hazing in public schools is a significant problem that may result in serious physical or emotional harm to students who are victims. According to experts in the field, each year more than 1,500,000 American students become new hazing victims. Hazing also results in legal challenges for school personnel. The courts consider public schools to be safe places where teaching and learning occur in a peaceful environment. Thus, school personnel have a leading responsibility to protect the safety of students under the functional custody of their schools. Hazing activities, if not checked, pose a threat to the health and safety of students. Hazing by its very nature is a private act. Consequently, a significant number of hazing acts goes unreported. Hazing has become so prevalent that it has prompted 44 states to pass legislation banning it. Despite anti-hazing laws, hazing continues to occur among athletes, peer groups, gangs, and other schools clubs and organizations. Hazing creates stress, anxiety, intimidation, and often results in physical and emotional harm to victims. Well-defined policies prohibiting hazing and proper procedures for reporting hazing coupled with vigilance by school personnel in monitoring student activities may greatly reduce hazing incidents and minimize potential liability claims for school personnel.
Descriptors: Hazing, Public Schools, Legal Problems, Legal Responsibility, School Responsibility, Injuries, Negligence, Standards, High School Students, College Students, Instructional Leadership
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: High Schools; Secondary Education; Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A