Allan interviewed for Dayton Daily News article on normalization of hazing

The Dayton Daily News interviewed Elizabeth Allan, a professor of higher education at the University of Maine, for an article on the normalization of hazing. “You hear people rationalize it or dismiss it or minimize it, saying, ‘Oh, no, no, that wasn’t hazing, that was just an initiation, or that was just a tradition, or that was just for bonding,’” said Allan. Hazing and the laws surrounding it have drawn more attention in light of recent events including the death of a fraternity pledge at Pennsylvania State University and lawsuits against the University of Dayton and the University of Toledo, the article states. Allan, who has been the lead investigator in studies on hazing and has testified in Congress on the issue, told the Dayton Daily News that hazing is widespread and that harmful incidents often go beyond coverage of the law. Ohio’s state law classifies hazing as an “initiation” activity, according to the Dayton Daily News. “The definition of hazing is not just to gain membership into a group, but it’s also to maintain one’s membership. The state laws are very uneven across the board,” said Allan. “When you have a law or policy, it’s important, but it’s not enough. There’s just a lot of work to be done to really sharpen the awareness of the general public, of the parents whose kids are going to school, of educators.”