Driving Culture Change: How the Hazing Prevention Consortium is Transforming College Campuses

Across the country, colleges and universities are working with students to redefine what community looks like — replacing outdated, harmful traditions with healthy, inclusive practices that cultivate belonging without harm.

At the center of this transformation are the dedicated liaisons from institutions participating in the Hazing Prevention Consortium (HPC), StopHazing’s research-to-practice initiative. The HPC or Consortium unites campuses in a shared commitment to develop sustainable, research-based hazing prevention strategies that create safer environments for all students – while also expanding the evidence base for effective hazing prevention.

Through ongoing collaboration, campus coaching, and data-driven assessment, planning, and evaluation, HPC member institutions are equipped to identify risk, strengthen prevention infrastructure, and build communities where every student can thrive.

Learn more about the HPC’s benefits.
Explore how the process works.

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Prevention in Practice: Campus Highlights from Fall 2025

During the September 2025 HPC Cohort 6-8 Launch Meetings, member campuses shared their latest updates and progress made — from university-wide training efforts to innovative awareness events that bring students, faculty, and leadership together around prevention.

Below, we highlight the diverse strategies (e.g., in-person trainings, online educational modules, poster campaigns, tabling) HPC institutions are using to strengthen prevention, guided by the eight components of the Hazing Prevention Framework (HPF). In accordance with the progression of the HPC, Cohort 8 institutions– those who are beginning the three-year process– focused heavily on building commitment and capacity across their campus communities, while Cohorts 6 and 7 are using their assessment data to deploy effective hazing prevention strategies and build infrastructure for sustainable hazing prevention. Cohort 8 institutions are laying a strong foundation for prevention by fortifying their institutional capacity and deepening commitment, while Cohorts 6 and 7 continue to emphasize sustainability and ongoing evaluation to inform strategies and maintain momentum.

Examples of Building Capacity for Prevention

Ensuring campuses have the people, resources, policies, and programs in place to prevent hazing effectively and sustainably is the focus of capacity for hazing prevention. It involves expanding education, growing coalitions, and equipping communities to act on shared prevention goals.

Arizona State University

Arizona State University (ASU) continues to strengthen campus capacity for hazing prevention through a shared-responsibility, institution-wide approach. Prevention is embedded into established university processes to make it part of routine engagement across the Sun Devil community. A centralized website anchors expectations and support, and ASU is examining conduct experience and sanction efficacy to reinforce learning and accountability over time. Role-based learning is integrated into standard university systems to reach participants and leaders across university communities and advance belonging, safety, and student success.

Indiana University

Indiana University (IU) has taken hazing prevention campus-wide, integrating education into first-year programs, student organizations, and Fraternity and Sorority life. A new social norms campaign, an updated hazing definition in the campus policy, and a centralized reporting system reflect just a few of IU’s strategies aligned with a holistic approach. The university also hired a dedicated health educator to expand hazing prevention initiatives across all 750+ student organizations, not just Greek-letter organizations.

University of San Diego

The University of San Diego (USD) continues to expand its prevention efforts through collaboration, innovation, and education. The university launched its first in-person hazing education workshop this fall, complemented by campus-wide messaging and evaluation initiatives. They are also launching new reporting tools to further encourage campus reporting and accountability. With strong leadership support and student engagement, prevention at USD is becoming part of the campus culture.

Rhodes College

Rhodes adopted a new, campus-wide hazing policy and launched athletic staff training led by the head football coach. They have reinforced commitment to hazing prevention work across their coalition and are working to update their colleagues across the Division of Student Life about the progress made and initiatives implemented thus far. Prevention is viewed as a shared responsibility, and ongoing re-evaluations are helping strengthen their approach and stakeholder engagement year over year.

Dartmouth College

Dartmouth’s prevention infrastructure continues to grow, supported by senior leadership investment and the creation of a new Hazing Prevention and Policy Management (HPPM) Coordinator position. The campus has introduced an online learning module, StandUp to Hazing, for Greek-lettered organizations, integrated hazing scenarios into sexual violence prevention trainings, and developed new reporting pathways to increase transparency — with all incidents and sanctions now publicly available on their website, in alignment with federal law requirements. A tri-chair coalition model is in place to engage stakeholders from Greek life and student societies, athletics, and club sports, and the college is pursuing a strategic approach to maintain momentum.

Rutgers University – New Brunswick

Rutgers is expanding its prevention foundation by building a formal coalition and strengthening training for students, faculty, and staff. The Office of Fraternity and Sorority Affairs and Student Conduct collaborate on group investigations, while athletes, members of sports clubs, student organizations, and fraternities/sororities complete required trainings and sign statements of understanding. These initiatives represent significant progress toward a coordinated, campus-wide prevention approach.

Washington State University

Washington State University (WSU) continues to build capacity through educational opportunities and visible leadership commitment to the issue. Their Hazing Prevention Advisory Committee, comprising 12 members, meets two to three times per semester to sustain communication and collaboration, and is in the process of increasing the committee capacity and roles to strengthen prevention. Staff, faculty, and incoming students receive prevention training, reinforcing a consistent, campus-wide understanding of hazing and its impact.

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Strengthening Sustainability and Campus Culture

Sustainability ensures hazing prevention becomes part of the institutional fabric. This includes building leadership buy-in, integrating prevention into structures such as policy and orientation, and maintaining visibility through ongoing education and communication.

William & Mary

At William & Mary, prevention is a shared value — from students to senior leadership. Their hazing prevention coalition engages faculty, undergraduate students, and campus life partners to ensure initiatives move forward and are championed across the community. The campus’s Home Without Hazing initiative continues to inspire collective action and strengthen the message that belonging and accountability go hand in hand.

Harvard University

Harvard implemented a university-wide hazing policy and reporting process across all 13 undergraduate and graduate schools. They are working to build prevention into every layer of campus life and across stakeholder groups — from online modules and new student orientation to required training for clubs and intramural teams. Harvard liaisons facilitated the 10 Signs of Healthy and Unhealthy Groups training with their students, reaching over 1,200 members of their undergraduate campus community.

Princeton University

Princeton’s leadership, including the Vice President of Campus Life and the University President, has prioritized prevention by requiring all undergraduates to complete StandUp to Hazing–hazing prevention education by StopHazing– and expressed commitment to keeping the work of the task force comprehensive and ongoing. Other stakeholders have also been trained to support hazing prevention efforts, with University Health staff undergoing in-person training, and coaches completing the StandUp to Hazing online module.  Group sanctions are being explored to increase accountability and bolster secondary prevention efforts.

Southern Methodist University

Southern Methodist University (SMU) is expanding hazing prevention modules and evaluating its team investigation model. By shifting to a team investigation model, the campus is building capacity to efficiently respond to hazing reports and increase students’ trust in the process. Additionally, a new athletics representative joined their coalition, reinforcing the multidisciplinary approach that drives sustained change.

University of Mississippi

With an updated website and revisions to hazing laws, the University of Mississippi is bolstering prevention under new campus leadership. Resident Assistants (RAs) and faculty have completed required training, and the campus coalition includes a diverse mix of voices spread across three subcommittees. In year 2 of the HPC, the University of Mississippi developed a strategic plan with three key focus areas– prevention, intervention, and public relations– that each Hazing Prevention Taskforce subcommittee continues to advance.

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Advancing Assessment and Evaluation

Assessment focuses on measuring and characterizing campus hazing through multiple data sources, including surveys, the Hazing Prevention Rubric, and qualitative insights gathered during site visits. These tools provide a comprehensive understanding of hazing behaviors, perceptions, and prevention capacity across institutions. Evaluation then builds upon this foundation, enabling campuses to determine what strategies are effective and where improvements are needed. HPC campuses use case studies, event data, and continuous feedback loops to inform decision-making, refine prevention strategies, and sustain momentum over time.

New Mexico State University

During National Hazing Awareness Week, New Mexico State University (NMSU) delivered creative, community-based and academic-based programming that reached more than 500 students.

Through hands-on engagement and the visible support of NMSU President Ferme—who kicked off the tabling event with his signature—NMSU demonstrates how collaboration across academics, student life, and athletics can strengthen prevention efforts. This partnership not only models the power of senior leadership involvement but also shows how creative programming can generate meaningful data on student awareness and impact.

Virginia Commonwealth University

Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) is reviewing data from its Adam Oakes Day of Remembrance, the university’s annual hazing prevention day and day of remembrance of Adam Oakes. The goal of this review is to make informed improvements to future programming and policy updates. Similarly, VCU liaisons are collecting feedback on hazing prevention training for students joining selective organizations, required by state law, to ensure that students are meeting the proposed learning outcomes while having opportunities for peer interactions. Regular coalition meetings support reflection, re-commitment, and strategy refinement.

Kenyon College

Kenyon is using assessment data and reports from StandUp to Hazing to guide its practices around coalition building and social engagement. Kenyon’s coalition has focused on continuous feedback and engagement, from launching social media channels to hosting a dinner with fraternity and sorority chapter and council officers. Kenyon liaisons are leveraging data from their site visit reports and campus incident data to refine strategies for interfacing with student leaders and addressing gaps in student knowledge of hazing. The campus has also integrated StandUp to Hazing, into its first-year curriculum, gathering insights to guide future prevention strategies.

Cohort 8

In an effort to build ongoing, campus-wide commitment to data-driven hazing prevention, Dartmouth College, Rutgers University, and Washington State University are gearing up to complete their year 1 HPC assessments including the Hazing Prevention Rubric, a campus hazing survey, and a campus culture and hazing climate site visit report. This assessment data will be used to inform a research-based planning process that will help each campus identify prevention strategies that will resonate within their campus culture and context over time.

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Building a Movement, Together

The work of these campuses — and all members of the Hazing Prevention Consortium — demonstrates what’s possible when research meets practice. By building coalitions, developing strategies tailored to campus culture, and centering student voices, HPC institutions are shaping safer, stronger communities where every student belongs.

Together, they are proving that prevention works — and that culture change is not only achievable but already underway.

Learn more about joining the Hazing Prevention Consortium here.