Hazing alleged at Hamilton High School

Parents group asks for more oversight of girls’ Almeda Club and ‘Walk of Trust’ initiation

By Aaron Gifford

A video of blindfolded girls walking into the boys’ bathroom at Hamilton High School has prompted several angry parents to ask the district for better oversight of a girls’ club that has existed for nearly a century.

The parents obtained the video several days after the Nov. 4 “Walk of Trust” initiation took place at the school after an evening social event. Parents said the girls complained about the smell of the bathroom, and one of them accidentally bumped her head in the doorway, but no one was injured.

E-mail exchanges and individual meetings between parents and Superintendent Diana Bowers preceded a Nov. 23 board meeting that was attended by more than 75 people. Most of the speakers criticized the voluntary initiation ritual and asked for better supervision of club activities. Parents also complained about the club’s rule to prohibit freshman from joining, calling it discriminatory.

The club originated as the Almeda Literary Society, said Mary Willson, who is angry over the initiation event even though her daughter is a member. Willson said the club is mostly a social organization that performs some community service and organizes an annual holiday dance.

“The last thing we want is the club to be discontinued,” Willson said. “Every time an issue comes up, the ones who get punished are the kids. At this point, we’d like to see a policy where the school is held accountable. Our children are in their care for seven hours a day.”

At the board meeting, Bowers read the following statement:

“We do not believe that the trust walk created a risk of emotional, physical or psychological harm to the participating students, but do understand that some of the activities may have caused discomfort among some students. The trust walk was not meant to haze. It was intended to foster positive working relationships among the members of the group. We have reviewed the trust walk activities with the Almeda students and discussed how levels of comfort with regard to parts of the trust walk might vary from student to student and, as a result, might not accomplish the group’s goal of fostering positive working relationships. Almeda will be reviewing its activities for new members with this understanding guiding its future plans. We believe that the issue has been appropriately addressed.”

The Board of Education listened to complaints and concerns but did not take any action. In an interview the following day, Superintendent Bowers said district officials, based on interviews with Almeda members, did not find any evidence of hazing; no students or faculty members will be disciplined; however, she said, the club will be told not to conduct its “Walk of Trust” event in the boy’s bathroom.

“The bathroom,” she said, “was a concern.”

Bowers said changes to club rules allowing freshmen to join will not be considered at this time.

“The dance is something that goes from 10 p.m. until 1 a.m.,” she said. “Freshmen aren’t at that maturity level. This is something for our kids to look forward to [as upperclassmen]. It’s a good–sense policy instead of a board policy.”

Hazing alleged at Hamilton High School

Parents group asks for more oversight of girls’ Almeda Club and ‘Walk of Trust’ initiation

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