SC college students kicked out for using ‘racist, misogynistic’ insults at sporting event
Presbyterian College in Clinton, South Carolina, kicked out four students and punished five others for taunting another university’s lacrosse team with “racist, misogynistic, hateful, and otherwise inappropriate language and behaviors” before a February match, the school said in a statement Thursday.
“We are profoundly sorry for what our guests from Howard University experienced that day,” the college said in the statement. “Our hearts are heavy for them and for women and people of color throughout the PC community, many of whom felt less safe because of the actions of a select few.”
“Yet we do not mistake apologies for actions, nor heartfelt statements for accountability,” Presbyterian College, also known as PC, said.
The expulsions and punishments stem from an incident on Feb. 11 in which a group of Presbyterian College students taunted the Howard University’s women’s lacrosse team as they warmed up before a game, according to the school.
Howard University is a historically Black university in Washington, D.C.
After the incident, the college drafted a lawyer to investigate. Thursday, the college released the findings of the investigation.
The investigation found that “several” members of the Pi Kappa Phi fraternity taunted the women’s lacrosse team from a section outside of the college’s sports stadium commonly known as “Hoseville.”
The college’s mascot is the Blue Hose.
The investigation found that some students and staff took action to address the “inexcusable behavior” during the incident, the college said.
The investigation entailed interviews with 31 people, including witnesses from PC and Howard University and 11 student said to have done the taunting.
“The investigator collected 44 exhibits, produced a detailed account of all interviews, and supplied PC administrators with a detailed report,” the college said.
Along with expelling the four students, the college suspended one student for a year, required two students complete counseling or get suspended and penalized two students for alcohol violations, the college said.
The college did not identify the students it punished, citing a federal law that protects student records.
The college permanently banned the Pi Kappa Phi Fraternity from campus. Following the taunting incident, the fraternity had its charter revoked by the national headquarters for hazing, the college said. The national group left open the possibility that the fraternity could be founded again at PC, but the college stopped a future chapter with the permanent ban.
The college said it instituted the ban “in light of the PC chapter’s continued student conduct issues, including their significant involvement in the Feb. 11 incident.”
The investigation was conducted by independent lawyer Cindy Crick, according to the college.
This story was originally published May 5, 2022 at 3:28 PM.