Hazing is far from new. As early as Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome, ritualized tests of loyalty and endurance were woven into group identity and initiation (Bruckner, 2018). While the contexts have changed, the impulse behind hazing, proving belonging through endurance, has endured for centuries.
On today’s college campuses, however, the term hazing is often immediately associated with fraternities and sororities. That perception overlooks a broader reality. Hazing exists well beyond the Greek system, appearing in athletics, marching bands, clubs, and other student organizations. The issue is not confined to one community; it is a widespread challenge that demands collective responsibility (Kesslen, 2021).
What has become unmistakably clear in recent decades is the cost. Hazing is not a one-time event with temporary consequences. Research shows its effects can span a lifetime, shaping mental health, academic outcomes, professional confidence, and personal relationships. Since the year 2000, more than 50 lives have been lost in hazing-related incidents across the United States (Kesslen, 2021). These are not abstract figures. They are students whose futures ended before they began, and families forever changed by loss.
Despite increased attention, hazing prevention remains one of the most stubborn issues facing colleges and universities. While traditional responses, zero-tolerance policies, and punitive sanctions are often well-intended, research increasingly shows that punishment alone can unintentionally push harmful behavior further underground, making it harder to detect, address, and prevent. Scholars consistently reaffirm that meaningful change requires more than penalties. It demands strong organizational leadership, engaged alumni, sustained accountability, and educational strategies rooted in psychology, sociology, and student development (Parks, 2021).
Most importantly, it requires listening, especially to families whose personal tragedies remind us that hazing is not tradition. It is harmful, with lifelong consequences that can be fatal.
Choosing Education Over Optics
On February 1, 2026, Sigma Alpha Epsilon intentionally chose a different approach. Rather than responding defensively to misleading and generalized perceptions of fraternities, taking broad punitive measures against members, or ignoring a difficult conversation in hopes that it would go away, SAE leaned into education and accountability by hosting a fraternity-wide hazing prevention program featuring Lianne Kowiak, a nationally recognized advocate and leader in the anti-hazing movement.
The program reached members from more than 180 chapters across the country, demonstrating a willingness to engage in honest dialogue at scale and to confront difficult truths head-on. This was not symbolic programming. It was a deliberate investment in prevention, reflection, and culture change.
Lianne Kowiak is a founding member of the Anti-Hazing Coalition, a former Board Member of the Hazing Prevention Network, and a respected national voice in hazing education and policy. She has addressed thousands of students nationwide and worked directly with policymakers in Washington, D.C., advocating for stronger state and national anti-hazing legislation. Her credibility is grounded not only in expertise but in lived experience.
Her son, Harrison, lost his life to fraternity hazing during his sophomore year of college at just 19 years old. In the wake of that loss, Lianne transformed grief into purpose—committing her life to educating students, organizations, and institutions so that other families never endure the same tragedy. Through the Harrison Kowiak Scholarship Fund, her family has awarded more than 70 scholarships, sending student leaders to the annual Hazing Prevention Institute to “pay it forward” and expand prevention efforts nationwide.
