Jake Jorgensen ’17, Matt Freese ’17: Recently brought to public attention, the instances of hazing at Germantown Academy and Conestoga warrant many at Episcopal to revisit the idea of hazing—i.e., whether or not hazing occurs and to what extent. Concerning the incidents at Conestoga, philly.com explains, “The hazing at the elite Chester County public school, routinely ranked near the top academically in national ratings, escalated into assault one day last fall…Police charged the three seniors, all 17 at the time, as juveniles with assault, unlawful restraint, making terroristic threats, and related offenses.” Concerning the events at Germantown Academy, philly.com states, “A former Germantown Academy swimmer has filed a suit alleging that the elite preparatory school tolerated physical and mental abuse suffered by him and other swimmers under the watch of nationally renowned coach Richard Shoulberg.”
Multiple athletes at Episcopal have vouched for the fact that hazing does not occur at Episcopal—especially to the extent that anyone would feel mentally or physically abused. Elodie Furey ’17, a member of the Episcopal Girls’ Basketball team, states, “I think what happened at GA and [Cone]stoga is very wrong and it’s terrible that people felt unsafe because of their teammates who are supposed to have their backs and support them.” She explains, “I haven’t had any experiences with hazing in High School but as seen in the news it is definitely an issue that needs to be addressed.” Emma Seiberlich ’17, a member of the Episcopal Girls’ Swimming team, agrees, “I haven’t personally witnessed any hazing; however, when these stories are brought to the public eye, there are often claims that the activity under discussion is ‘tradition’ or has been going on forever.”
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According to Furey, “Whenever a student feels uncomfortable or unsafe things have gone too far. Team activities should allow everyone to have fun together and bond—not hurt certain people for the other’s enjoyment.” Likewise, Seiberlich explains, “A lot of kids at Episcopal casually pick on the freshmen, which I guess is normal, but to me the line that shouldn’t be crossed is very clear. If you are forcing anyone to do something (whether physical or not) that they don’t want to do, and it leads them to feel in danger or could cause them physical or emotional pain, that’s not okay! Especially if you are doing this to them for your own amusement, which is often the case.”
In addition, Seiberlich mentions, “The closest thing we have to hazing is the ‘Freshmen 500’ (all the freshmen have to swim the 500 free at a dual meet once throughout the season) on the swim team or having the freshmen carry equipment on the lacrosse teams—in both instances no athletes are put in danger, embarrassed, or abused.” Lacrosse Captain, Eric Haab ’16, concurs, “I’ve never seen or obviously taken part in anything revolving around hazing.” He continues, “On the lacrosse team I can say that the younger players definitely have roles, like we trust the freshmen and sophomores to bring out the balls and the cones, but further than that I’d say that’s the line because, in today’s society, there’s a thin line between even just judgment and hazing…and just everyone knowing their role on the team.”
Mr. Farrell, the Associate Director of Athletics, adds, “I think in 2016 people are much more aware, and people do not tolerate hazing like, say 30, 40 years ago, where it probably occurred more often, and it was—for right or for wrong—thought of as a right of passage.” Mr. Farrell stresses, “In the athletic department, we do our best to make sure the coaches of all the teams are aware of hazing and how important it is to not only keep your eye on your athletes but also to actually discuss the hazing amongst the teammates to try to prevent anything from happening.”