ABSTRACT
The notion that men within higher education perpetrate hazing led to a bias, among coaches, athletic administrators, and other higher education officials, which effectively led these individuals to erroneously conclude that hazing was not as problematic in women's sports as it is in men's. The rise in hazing incidents in college athletics was confirmed in a 1998 report conducted by Alfred University in partnership with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The exposure that the women's teams at University of Oklahoma (OU), Northwestern, and Franklin and Marshall College (F&M) received from the media and throughout higher education was not only based on concerns about hazing but was also about the prevalence of sexual harassment and outlandish rituals in these hazing practices. When hazing occurred on their campuses, as a matter of due diligence and a commitment to good governance, they were liable for the hazing of their student-athletes. The Internet has altered how athletics departments operate.
