Rod Kelley ’06 comments on how Furman U. is addressing hazing

Furman is the only private university in South Carolina to make hazing information public. Furman’s Rod Kelley, 2006 alumnus and assistant dean of student conduct, told HazingInfo.org the reporting reflects the university’s overarching goal of transparency and cross-campus collaboration toward addressing hazing. He said rituals and tradition “can get twisted very quickly and lead to power imbalances” within student groups, which, in turn, could lead to dangerous initiation rites. “It’s about changing the culture,” he added.

HazingInfo.org said Furman’s position on hazing transparency has the university well-positioned to implement a new federal law that will require all U.S. colleges and universities to publicly disclose hazing incidents on their websites by this December.