Definitions
Hazing: According to state laws, “hazing” means any intentional, knowing, reckless act, or failure to report acts, occurring on or off the campus of an educational institution, by one person alone or acting with others, directed against a student, that endangers the mental or physical health or safety of a student for the purpose of pledging, being initiated into, affiliating with, holding office in, or maintaining membership in an organization. This includes, but is not limited to:
- Any type of physical brutality, such as whipping, striking, etc.;
- Physical activity, such as sleep deprivation, exposure to the elements, etc.;
- Any activity involving consumption of a liquid, alcoholic beverage, liquor, drug, or other substance that subjects the student to an unreasonable risk of harm or that adversely affects the mental or physical health or safety of the student;
- Any activity in violation of state or federal laws that intimidates the student with ostracism, that subjects the student to extreme mental stress, shame, or humiliation, that adversely affects the mental health or dignity of the student or discourages the student from entering or remaining registered in an educational institution, or that may reasonably be expected to cause a student to leave the organization or the institution;
- Any activity that induces, causes, or requires the student to perform a duty or task that involves a violation of any state of federal law, to include the Texas Penal Code.
Pledge: Any person who has been accepted by, is considering an offer of membership from, or is in the process of qualifying for membership in a club/organization.
Pledging: Any action or activity related to becoming a member of a club/organization.
Organization: A club, fraternity, sorority, association, corporation, order, society, corps, or service, social, or similar group, whose members are primarily students.