High School Hazing (Social Studies: Teen Issues) [Library Binding]

Hank Nuwer (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Filled with painful stories of initiation rites that have ended in humiliation, legal action, and even death, this book deflates the notion that hazing is a harmless way to build group unity. It's shown, instead, as a power play of intimidation and peer pressure that, especially during the adolescent years, is nearly impossible to withstand. Nuwer examines a range of activities that can be considered hazing, from embarrassing stunts and alcohol consumption to real or simulated sex acts and beatings. He also links hazing to much more graphic rites, such as gang initiations. The organization of the text is too loose, and the narrative gets repetitive at times. But the author's passion is clear, and his closing chapters on legislation and ways to stop hazing make his book a real call to action. Source notes; list of resources and organizations. Randy Meyer

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 12 and up
  
• Library Binding: 144 pages
• Publisher: Franklin Watts (March 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0531116824
• ISBN-13: 978-0531116821
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6.4 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.1 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,806,366 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

National Award Renamed for Franklin College Professor

FRANKLIN, IND. - A national organization focused on hazing prevention and intervention has renamed its prestigious annual awards program in honor of Franklin College associate professor of journalism Hank Nuwer.

HazingPrevention.Org recently presented the "Hank Nuwer Anti-Hazing Hero Award" in 2011. The award recognizes up to five individuals, ranging from students, educators, social fraternity advisers, coaches and researchers, for extraordinary effort or accomplishment in the task of standing up to the dangerous and often illegal practice of hazing.

Nuwer's involvement as a social critic and journalist targeting hazing abuses began in 1978 when he wrote about the behavioral aspects of hazing in an essay for Human Behavior magazine. Nuwer has since made hazing education, prevention and intervention a significant part of his life's work.

"One death from hazing diminishes us all as a culture," said Nuwer. "For me as a journalist I saw the grief parents felt when a son or daughter died so tragically and unnecessarily.

"I saw how the lives of hazers were forever ruined, knowing every day of their own lives there was one who walked amongst them who would never graduate, never have a child, never have the opportunities he or she was meant to happen. And then there are the colleges and the Greek groups or athletic teams who will always bear the stigma of having a death from hazing that they somehow failed to prohibit.

"I simply feel that my work gives a voice to the voiceless, all those who died from hazing who cannot tell readers how easily their demise might have been prevented."

Nuwer has written numerous articles and four books on hazing, including the groundbreaking 1990 book Broken Pledges: The Deadly Rite of Hazing . His other hazing books are High School Hazing (Scholastic), Wrongs of Passage and The Hazing Reader (Indiana University Press). He's written several books on the craft of writing, including To the Young Writer.

In 2006, the State University of New York awarded Nuwer an honorary doctorate to recognize his scholarly work in the area of hazing prevention. Author Michael Kimmel's 2008 best-selling book Guyland cited Nuwer as "a virtual one-man crusade to eliminate hazing" for more than 30 years. A frequent commentator on TV, Nuwer's appearances include the Today Show with Matt Lauer and CNN with Anderson Cooper. Nuwer also is a nationally-known speaker who has lectured at more than 120 campuses, including Dartmouth, the University of Michigan, Penn State and Syracuse University.

Nuwer serves on the board of HazingPrevention.Org and the advisory board of Security on Campus, a national watchdog organization devoted to rooting out violence on campus. He developed an online hazing prevention educational course for the Human Equation group in 2007-08 and started a collection of educational print and video materials on hazing at Buffalo State College's Butler Library. He has appeared in numerous documentaries, most recently Haze , the documentary inspired by the death of Colorado student Lynn Gordon Bailey and narrated by Robin Wright Penn. His regular hazing prevention column appears on the StopHazing.Org Web site.

A resident of Waldron, Ind., Nuwer advises Alpha Lambda Delta Honor Society at Franklin College and teaches journalism courses such as investigative reporting. He is a member of Sigma Tau Rho social fraternity at Buffalo State College and Phi Kappa Phi national honor society.

Founded in 1834, Franklin College is a residential four-year undergraduate liberal arts institution 20 minutes from downtown Indianapolis. He has also taught at other institutions such as the University of Richmond and Ball State University. He is a member of the BSU Journalism Hall of Fame and was inducted in 2010.

A graduate of Buffalo State College, he has been named a Distinguished Alumnus (1999) and awarded an honorary doctorate (2006). BSC's Butler Library honored him with its establishment of the Hazing Collection and the Hank Nuwer Collection. The curator at Butler Library is archivist Dan Dilandro.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Such an important topic!, May 30, 2000

By 

Nicole Cooke - See all my reviews

This review is from: High School Hazing: When Rites Become Wrongs (Paperback)

Hazing is an often neglected but important topic that deserves the serious treatment given by author. A victim and perpetuator of hazing himself, Nuwer depicts hazing as a "tradition of deceit," and a series of dangerous acts designed to foster bonding and acceptance.

In a startling mix of information, photographs and personal accounts, the book describes hazing as an ancient practice that has endured and become increasingly deadly. Hazing encompasses more than binge drinking and paddling; it spans all ages, and stems from the need to control others and the need to be accepted. Hazing can begin as early as grammar school, and has been documented in the military, in secret societies, in gangs, on sports teams, and even in some professions. Some of the violations committed include performing sex acts, shoplifting, paddling, alcohol abuse, sleep deprivation, and confinement.

Nuwer's description of hazing is shocking and disturbing, as it should be. High School Hazing will enlighten and inform readers about this phenomenon. One area of the book that could be stronger is the conclusion, which provides preliminary suggestions on how to stop hazing. The points serve more as "things to keep in mind," or as warning signs to identify hazing, but much more description and guidance is needed before a participant could successfully stop a hazing ritual or organization.

This book would be an important addition to both school and public libraries. This is an imperative piece of knowledge young adults should be exposed to as soon as possible.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars High School Hazing, April 1, 2000

By 

Karen N. Reiche (Maine) - See all my reviews

This review is from: High School Hazing (Social Studies: Teen Issues) (Library Binding)

Who thought high school hazing was a problem? An excellent factual resource for all school administraters, teachers, coaches, students and parents. How to identify hazing and how to deal with it. Why are so many people OK with some forms of hazing, is assualt and harrassment OK? Those that were hazed and now haze--does that make it ok? I didn't know it was even a high school problem until it was exposed in our school. A must for every high school library. A vivid and heartbreaking account of hazing, a real educational resource. An excellent and much needed book, read it and make sure it's in your school library.