Stephen Tigner decided he would not be hazed in a freshman initiation at Shoshone High School, but now he is subject to constant torment.
When seniors wanted Tigner, 15, and others to sport silly outfits, he refused. He had heard that other boys endured diapers or feminine attire during homecoming week."I'd rather not be humiliated and ridiculed," Tigner explained, so he announced he was skipping initiation.
Life got ever more miserable. On school grounds, he was threatened. Away from school, he was tackled, hit with rocks and splattered with french-fry sauce.
School officials, including Principal Ben Christensen, said they were powerless to protect Tigner off of school grounds. They advised him to call police.
Superintendent Max Excell said initiation is about "bonding," not humiliation.
Tigner's parents, Clyde and Claudia Tigner, asked the School Board to intervene and abolish initiation.
The school earlier banned freshman "slave sales" and cross-dressing. Sexually and politically "unacceptable" attire also were prohibited.
This week the board further refined the rules. Seniors no longer will select their victims. Older students get their younger partners via random lottery.
Idaho has outlawed hazing on college campuses.
At Kimberly High School, freshman initiation is "not acceptable - period," Principal Ralph Campbell said. "It should not be found anywhere, in this state or the nation."
Twin Falls High School Vice Principal Andy Barron said sophomores were sometimes "degraded" by their older initiators: covered with flour, sprayed with vinegar and hit with shaving cream. Such behavior is prohibited, he said.
"It embarrasses people, humiliates them, it takes away self-esteem and lowers their status among their peers," Stephen Tigner said.
"I'm not saying that it's right, but I'm saying tradition in small schools is extremely powerful," Christensen said. "If I eliminated all the homecoming activities, I wouldn't be the administrator next year - it's as simple as that," he said.