Remembering the Uvalde shooting victims, covering the hazing trial of former BGSU students
Happy Memorial Day, Columbus!
I wanted to start off this week’s education newsletter by reflecting on last week’s horrific shooting in Uvalde, Texas at Robb Elementary School where 19 students and two teachers died.
Sadness, frustration, hopelessness, outrage, fear and anger are just some of the many emotions I experienced this past week while trying to process the news and simuatenyly report on stories related to the shooting that are relevant to Columbus readers.
My mom is a teacher. My friends work in education. I don’t have any children of my own, but I volunteer weekly with middle school students. My biggest fear as an education reporter is that my colleagues and I will end up covering a school shooting. I pray that never happens.
You can read about the 21 victims in this USA Today story.
Review Session: Higher education reporter Sheridan Hendrix was up in Bowling Green last week covering the trial of two former Bowling Green State University students accused of hazing their fraternity brother Stone Foltz to death.
Read More: Prosecutors in Stone Foltz hazing death trial: 'Accidents just don't happen'
Foltz, 20, is a 2019 graduate of Buckeye Valley High School in Delaware County's Troy Township. He died in March 2021 of fatal alcohol intoxication following an initiation event called "Big Little Night" held by their fraternity, Pi Kappa Alpha International, better known as PIKE.
On Friday, a Wood County jury found two former Bowling Green State University fraternity brothers guilty of hazing and other charges in the death of Foltz, but not guilty of reckless homicide and involuntary manslaughter charges.
Jacob Krinn, 21, of Delaware, was found guilty of hazing, failure to comply with underage alcohol laws, and obstructing official business.
The jury found him not guilty of first-degree felony involuntary manslaughter, third-degree felony involuntary manslaughter, reckless homicide, and felonious assault.
Krinn was Foltz's fraternity Big Brother, who was supposed to mentor him as a new PIKE member.
Troy Henricksen, 24, of Grove City, was found guilty of obstructing justice, eight counts of hazing, and seven counts of failure to comply with underage alcohol laws.
The jury found him not guilty of first-degree felony involuntary manslaughter, reckless homicide, tampering with evidence, obstructing justice, eight counts of hazing, and seven counts of failure to comply with underage alcohol laws.
Henricksen was the PIKE chapter's pledge educator and worked most closely with the fraternity's new members.
Broken Pledge Podcast: Chapter 8: ‘They killed him’
Big Little Night is a tradition common in many Greek organizations where new members are paired with an older member as a mentor. Foltz was paired with Krinn, who he knew from their hometown.
At the event, PIKE pledges were blindfolded with their ties and led into the basement, where active members yelled and barked at them to disorient them. After their blindfolds were removed, pledges' Big Brothers were revealed and were handed a "family bottle," a bottle of liquor that was the same brand that their Bigs drank during their initiation.
Broken Pledge: A podcast series about fraternity hazing
Krinn handed Foltz a liter of Evan Williams bourbon, the equivalent of about 18 shots, which he drank in about 15 minutes, former PIKE members previously testified.
Foltz was dropped off that night at his apartment by Krinn, his fraternity big brother. His roommate found him a half-hour later unconscious and called 911.
You can listen to The Dispatch's podcast series about fraternity hazing.
Extra Credit:
Danae King wrote about how Whitehall City Schools will introduce the Kitchen of Life program to freshmen in the fall. The culinary program, created and hosted by the Lori Schottenstein Chabad Center in New Albany, will use cooking stations similar to those on the hit TV show to teach children about cooking and resiliency.
Anna Staver examined if Ohio’s Third Grade Reading Guarantee is working — specifically whether the stigma of being held back was outweighed by gains in reading comprehension and student success.
Anna Staver also wrote a story about how there are at least 28 bills that would change how Ohioans purchase, carry and use their guns have been introduced since this legislative session started in January 2021. Here's where the different bills introduced during this General Assembly stand.
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Until next time,
Megan Henry
Email: mhenry@dispatch.com
Twitter: @megankhenry
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Education News: Hazing trial of former BGSU students ends
