A long-anticipated revision of the student alcohol policy will go into effect at the beginning of winter term, taking into account recommendations issued by the Ad Hoc Working Group on Alcohol Policy, Dean of the College James Larimore said.
The revisions include online event registration, education for students serving alcohol, a list of places available for events and a rewording of the Good Samaritan policy. Details of the new regulations have not yet been decided.
Larimore said that the main purpose of revising the student alcohol policy was to make students more aware of their rights. "We're recasting the policy from one that focuses on what is prohibited, to a statement that provides students with more helpful information on what is allowed," he said.
Under the new event registration system, students will be able to register social events on-line with Safety and Security.
Larimore placed emphasis on simplifying the registration process to make more student groups aware of their ability to hold social events where alcohol is served. In the past, he said, "because it was not so clearly understood how you could [register], few of those events were held."
Student Body President Janos Marton '04, a member of the working group, agreed. He said it was important to create a uniform standard that could be used by all students wishing to host an event.
Along with the revision of the registration policy, the working group recommended a change in the office responsible for registering social events.
"Students overwhelmingly favored Safety and Security," said Larimore. Previously, the Office of Residential Life had been in charge of registering events in residential settings, while Safety and Security was in charge of patrolling all events. Larimore said that registering all events, regardless of location, through one office will make the process simpler.
Currently, ORL is working with various student groups to develop a Dartmouth-specific program to train students who will be serving alcohol and acting as monitors at events.
Larimore said that he hoped the new policy would clearly outline options for housing social events. Whereas the language of the current alcohol policy provides a list of places where social events involving alcohol are prohibited, the new policy will provide a list of places where these events are, in fact, allowed. These places include the Collis Common Ground, the Tom Dent Cabin, residence halls, fraternity and sorority houses, the Hanover Inn, Lone Pine Tavern, the Top of the Hop and "other designated public social spaces," according to the Working Group's written report.
Larimore said he was pleased with the results of an "experiment" last year, in which the Tom Dent Cabin was turned over to the Student Assembly as a space on campus where students could host events. "It was an effort to provide additional social space, and it worked very well," he said.
The rewording of the Good Samaritan clause is designed to make students aware that they can seek help at any time, as long as they don't abuse the policy, Marton said.
Under the College's current alcohol policy, the Good Samaritan clause states that any intoxicated student brought to medical attention by another student will not face disciplinary action by the College. The Working Group recommended taking out a qualifier that limits use of the policy to "isolated incidents."
Larimore said there were several misperceptions about the policy that he hoped the new wording will clarify. "The main point of the Good Samaritan Policy is to make it very clear that the main concern is the health and well-being of the students," he said.
During the summer term, a committee of students met with Professor Robert Binswanger, the chair of the Working Group, to make the final proposals that were submitted to Larimore in August. Among their accomplishments during the term was a draft of the form by which student groups could register social events, as well as the recommendation that registration be put under the charge of Safety and Security.
The Ad Hoc Working Group reached its conclusions based on student surveys, forums and discussions with various student groups, according to Matt Oppenheimer '05, who co-chaired the Student Assembly Committee on Alcohol with Tom White '04.
"This really reflects student thought and student ideas," Binswanger said. "Now it's up to the college to forge ahead."
