Hank Nuwer, Author; Hazing Deaths Database

Here is the link to the Wyoming Valley High School story

Excerpt: Wyoming Valley West School District officials confirm that an investigation is underway into an alleged hazing incident at the high school. It involves the water polo team and allegedly took place about two and a half weeks ago in a locker room at the  high school in Plymouth. The long time swim coach Frank Tribendus was suspended for two weeks as a result of the incident for allegedly not providing proper supervision inside the locker room. Superintendent of schools Chuck Supon told Eyewitness News, “I can confirm that it involved male members of the water polo team and involved horseplay that may have gone to far.  It is a situation where maybe three or four kids think it was funny and one doesn’t think it was so funny and then we have an issue.” Supon added, “These are great kids and I think it may have been something that just went too far.” Supon said he could not say too much since it was a personnel mater and that the investigation was ongoing by the school resource officer who works for Plymouth Police. Coach Tribendus returned to the swim team Thursday but told this reporter he would not make any comment since it was a personnel mater referring me to Superintendent Supon. Supon added, “I can tell you no stone went unturned it was a very tedious few days as we interviewed students, adults and the coaching staff.”    Supon says the coach was suspended for not providing proper supervision of the locker room. Supon said, “It was the coach who brought this to the attention of the administration in the first place. As a result of the incident the district has placed new guidelines and rules into  place regarding future locker room supervision.

Here is an excerpt:

The Washington National Opera has commissioned a one-hour opera based on the life and death of Private Chen. Called “An American Soldier,” the opera is being composed by Huang Ruo, a Chinese-born composer now living in New York. The libretto is being written by the Chinese-American playwright David Henry Hwang, author of the plays “M. Butterfly” and “Chinglish.”

“I felt that this is a very good subject for us because, after all, opera is not just entertainment,” Mr. Huang said in an interview on Thursday. “It’s a way to fulfill a social duty for society — in this case, to bring more awareness about what happened to Danny and somehow to help spread the word and also to really see what we can learn from this tragedy.”

The opera is scheduled to premiere at the Kennedy Center in Washington next June.

Here is the link.  This on top of the news a Fiji pledge at the University of Virginia survived with an even higher BAC

Here is the link

Snippet from the Intelligencer

A “hazing incident” among student-athletes at Brooke High School is being investigated, officials confirmed last week. There were reports three students had been suspended from team activities.

…Brooke County Board of Education President Jim Piccirillo told our reporter the problem is being addressed.

Nice job, Intelligencer. Please follow up specifically with the punishments and account of the crime. Make sure police were involved if it looks as if activities amounted to a crime. –Hank Nuwer

Here is the whole article based on a FOIA request.

Here is a snippet from the University of Virginia Cavalier:

In light of last week’s National Hazing Prevention Week, The Cavalier Daily returned to the email exchanges of relevant administrators during those months. The following information has been obtained from emails secured through the Freedom of Information Act.

In response to a specific rush incident at Phi Gamma Delta (FIJI) that resulted in the hospitalization of a student with a .45 BAC, FIJI subsequently underwent an Inter-Fraternity Council Judicial Trial and was placed on social probation for five weeks. Three individual members involved in the incident received specific sanctions, including suspension and loss of leadership positions in the fraternity.

Then-IFC president Andy Colberg sent an email to members of the IFC community warning the fraternity community of a possible crack down by the University on fraternity activities due to rush-related hospitalizations.

“If we do not take responsibility and change our process, the University has made it abundantly clear that they will take over the rest of rush or cancel it, and they will reconsider the standing of the Inter-Fraternity system at U.Va.,” Colberg said in a Jan. 25 email. “Unfortunately, we are too big not to fail.”