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The NCAA’s Dr. Miles Brand* says hazing problems are best addressed at the campus level

From a March 8, 2007 Chronicle of Higher Education “Live Discussion.”

Question from Dr. Susan Lipkins, psychologist and author:

Do you agree that hazing has been a form of de facto discipline? In other words, coaches say “no hazing” but in fact, they expect the captains to have control of the team. Since the captains have no management training they are left to continue the traditions that maintain their power, the status quo. These “traditions” often include hazing.

Myles Brand:

Team leadership should not depend on embarrassing or harassing others. Indeed, that is a weak form of leadership that at least implicitly builds resentment. Hazing has no role to play in a well-run athletics program.

Question from Hank Nuwer, Franklin College; IUPUI:

I appreciate the hard work Mary Wilfert has done in the NCAA to promote awareness about athletic hazing. Nonetheless, some 40+ schools in the last year have been disciplined for hazing. What additional awareness plans do you personally have that may involve athletic directors, coaches, faculty reps and student leaders? Thank you for considering my question, Dr. Brand

Myles Brand:

As a former university president, [I recognize that] hazing on campus has been a difficult issue for years, and it is unfortunate that some see such activities as “rites of passage” or “team building” in athletics. It is a serious issue that must be addressed almost completely at the campus level. We will continue to educate on this issue and encourage campus leaders to be vigilant and quick to respond when instances arise.

*

From the Chronicle of Higher Education: Myles Brand, one of the most influential voices in college sports, joins us for a wide-ranging discussion about the state of intercollegiate athletics. In the past year, Mr. Brand, president of the NCAA, has defended colleges and universities during a Congressional investigation, led an effort to curb escalating expenses in athletics programs, and cracked down on bogus preparatory schools. He takes time during the busiest season in college sports to answer questions about the challenges in the college game.

By Hank Nuwer

Journalist Hank Nuwer tracks hazing deaths in fraternities and schools. Nuwer is the Alaska author of Hazing: Destroying Young Lives; Broken Pledges: The Deadly Rite of Hazing, High School Hazing, Wrongs of Passage and The Hazing Reader. In April of 2024 and April 2025 , the Alaska Press Club awarded him first place in the Best Columnist division and Best Humorist, second place.

He has written articles or columns on hazing for the Sunday Times of India, Toronto Globe & Mail, Harper's Magazine, Orlando Sentinel, The Chronicle of Higher Education and the New York Times Sunday Magazine. His current book is Hazing: Destroying Young Lives from Indiana University Press. He is married to Malgorzata Wroblewska Nuwer of Warsaw, Poland and Fairbanks, Alaska. Nuwer is a former columnist for the Greenville (Ohio)Early Bird and former managing editor of the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner in Alaska.
Nuwer was named the Ohio Society of Professional Journalists columnist of the year in 2021 for his “After Darke” column in the Early Bird. He also won third place for the column in 2022 from the Indiana chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists. He and his wife Gosia, recently of Union City, Ind., have owned 20 acres in Alaska for many years. “The move is a sort-of coming home for us,” said Nuwer. As a journalist, he’s written about the Alaskan Iditarod sled-dog race and other Alaska topics. Read his musings in his blog at Real Alaska Daily--http://realalaskadaily.com and in his weekly column "Far from Randolph" in the Winchester Star-Gazette of Randolph County, Indiana.

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