A man whose son was killed in a 2017 fraternity hazing incident at Penn State University cautioned students and parents about the dangers of such practices in an interview with Fox News Digital, emphasizing that anyone could fall victim.
Jim Piazza’s son, Timothy, was invited to join the Beta Theta Pi chapter at the university in February 2017. He attended a bid acceptance party where he and several other pledges were compelled to drink a handle of vodka.
They were then forced to consume more hard liquor before participating in an alcohol “obstacle course,” which involved “beer pong stations, and other stations where they were required to drink various forms of alcohol, like wine bags and beer shotguns,” Jim elaborated.
Timothy Piazza and his family dressed in Penn State gear. Timothy died from a hazing incident in 2017. (Jim Piazza)
Jim stressed that parents should advise their children to concentrate on their education and career skills, while steering clear of trouble inside or outside the academic setting.
Regarding fraternity pledges undergoing rush this fall, Jim pointed out that given the structure and dynamics of fraternities, pledges have control over their destinies and don’t have to succumb to hazing.
“Ultimately, the pledges possess some degree of power as they could unite and refuse to comply, because the fraternity members rely on them,” he explained.
“They need the money, right? They need money to move in the house, and they need the money to pay the dues,” he continued. “And we know of groups that have said, ‘no, we are not doing that,’ and the fraternity members gave them a hard time at first, and then after a while it was like, ‘OK, well, we still need the pledge class, so fine.’”
A photo of the Beta Theta Pi fraternity house at Penn State University. (AP Photo)
Jim criticized some fraternities at the national level, and some chapters of some fraternities at various schools for not taking anti-hazing policies seriously enough, saying that “they’re not getting it” and that “same old, same old” hazing habits still continue.
However, he has not soured on Greek life as a whole.
“I don’t have a problem with Greek life,” he said. “I think it has a lot of good things that it could give to the students. It can make a big campus small. It could create friendships that are everlasting. I think it teaches individuals that take the leadership roles how to be leaders.”
Beta Theta Pi did not return a comment request.
