UMaine Softball Team Placed on Three Years Probation and Suspended for One Week Next Spring Due to Hazing Violations
Contact: Joe Carr at (207) 581-3571; Brent Williamson at (207) 581-4158
ORONO — A University of Maine investigation has determined that several current members of the University of Maine softball team have participated in hazing activities while enrolled as UMaine students. Penalties include a one-week suspension for the entire team, to be served at the outset of the 2008 season, delaying the start of preseason preparation by seven days. The softball team has also been placed on disciplinary probation Individual penalties have been assessed to three current student-athletes found to have been in violation of both the University of Maine Student Code of Conduct and UMaine’s Student-Athlete Conduct Code. Hazing is expressly prohibited in both those documents.
“These are severe penalties which are appropriate given the serious nature of the offenses,” says Blake James, UMaine’s athletic director. “Hazing runs contrary to everything we stand for as a university and as an athletic department. It breaks down the foundations that support our teams, and it places individuals in difficult, sometimes dangerous situations. The message here is clear: we will not tolerate this kind of behavior.”
The offenses came to light this summer when one of the softball players posted 2006 “rookie party” photos on the Internet. A hazing watchdog organization, ncaahazing.com, found the photos and put them online at that organization’s site, simultaneously notifying the Bangor Daily News, which published a July 21 story based on those photos. UMaine launched a two-pronged investigation. James conducted preliminary interviews and assessed whether the student-athlete code of conduct had been violated. He also referred the matter to UMaine’s Office of Community Standards, a Division of Student Affairs unit that investigates possible violations of the Student Code of Conduct. The Office of Community Standards enlisted the consultative assistance of UMaine Prof. Elizabeth Allan, a nationally recognized academic expert on hazing.
Through these processes, investigators learned that similar parties occurred in the springs of 2004, 2005 and 2007. Each of these events occurred off campus, at rental properties occupied by team members. Several of the individuals involved are no longer UMaine students and are not subject to either code of conduct.
As a result of the combined investigations, the following penalties have been assessed:
– The softball team is suspended for one week at the outset of the 2008 season.
– The softball team will remain on disciplinary probation until May 31, 2010. Further violations of the conduct code during that time will result in more significant disciplinary action.
– Prior to the start of the 2008 season, the entire team will participate in 20 hours of community service, coordinated by UMaine’s Bodwell Volunteer Center.
– The team will participate in a mandatory anti-hazing and alcohol education program, to be coordinated by the Division of Student Affairs.
Because of violations of the student-athlete code of conduct, the following three student-athletes have received individual sanctions:
– Junior pitcher Jenna Balent (Conifer, Colo.) will be suspended for two games during the 2008 season.
– Junior Courtney Gingrich (Lititz, Penn.) will be suspended for ten games and she will no longer be a team captain.
– Junior infielder Ashley Waters (Amesbury, Mass.) will be suspended for two games and she will also forfeit her captaincy.
Balent, Gingrich and Waters have also been found to be in violation of the general student conduct code. Federal privacy laws prohibit public disclosure of the penalties assessed under that code.
“We have high expectations with regard to student behavior at the University of Maine,” says UMaine Dean of Students Robert Dana. “This is a serious academic community where people must conduct themselves in ways that demonstrate both self-respect and an appreciation of the ways in which our actions affect those around us. Hazing is one of those behaviors that will not be tolerated under any circumstances.”
UMaine President Robert Kennedy and James have taken steps to expand hazing awareness programming for student-athletes, effective with the 2007-2008 academic year. In addition to the hazing education that is part of the annual student-athlete orientation program, Kennedy and James have created a mandatory hazing awareness program for all head coaches, with the accompanying requirement that those coaches specifically address hazing with their teams before every season. In addition, the Division of Student Affairs will conduct hazing and alcohol abuse education programs for each team, beginning in the coming academic year.