University Decides Against Keg Ban

University administrators announced this week that they will not ban kegs from Georgetown housing, disregarding a recommendation from a disciplinary panel last year, though they did approve several changes to tighten regulation of student parties.

The new regulations, which take effect in August, reduce the number of kegs that students may obtain for parties in campus housing from two to one, Vice President for Student Affairs Todd Olson announced in a broadcast e-mail Wednesday evening.

Adopting a separate recommendation of the Disciplinary Review Committee, university administrators will be able to notify parents of repeat offenders of the alcohol policy under the age of 21 after a second infraction. Under the current policy, parents may not be notified before a third violation.

The DRC’s recommendation triggered a wave of opposition last fall. Students voted overwhelmingly against the DRC’s proposal in a non-binding referendum in October, and the local Area Neighborhood Commission passed a resolution early last month asking the university to allow kegs in university housing.

During a town hall meeting in October on the proposed change, numerous students argued that a keg ban would force students to consume more hard liquor and drink alcohol off-campus. Olson said in an e-mail that those arguments had played a factor in his decision.

“Reasons for not pursuing a ban on kegs include concerns about other alcohol use patterns that might emerge, along with perspectives of students and community members,” Olson said.

Olson added that the new policy will promote a balance between student socializing and campus safety.

“I believe this policy will still allow for student social gatherings while moderating the amount of alcohol present,” he said.

The DRC, a board composed of administrators, faculty members and students, made its recommendations for stricter alcohol rules to Olson last spring.

“Kegs serve as a representation of Georgetown’s image … and they didn’t want to be seen as setting a precedent [for] condoning the consumption of large amounts of alcohol,” Dante Randazzo (COL ’07), a DRC member, said.

GUSA President Twister Murchison (SFS ’08) said that he was relieved that the university decided not to enact a ban on kegs, calling the move one step in the process toward curbing student alcohol abuse.

Two members of the DRC, Theology Professor Frederick Ruf and Center for Minority Educational Affairs Director Dennis Williams, defended the proposed ban at the town hall meeting, saying that the recommendation was based largely on policies at other local universities. Ruf and Williams could not be reached for comment yesterday.

In a position paper given to Olson late last semester, Murchison and Student Association Chief of Staff Eden Schiffmann (COL ’08) said that student alcohol use has historically risen after colleges banned kegs on campus.

Murchison said that the student body as a whole played an important role in the process leading to Olson’s decision.

“The way that students reacted to this issue was very helpful for the process,” he said. The decision “shows the power of students to articulate university policy, and student concerns … were taken very seriously,” he added.

Kim Le (COL ’09) said that the university found a reasonable compromise between the current policy and a ban on kegs.

“I feel that the one keg-one party policy is really good because when there is unlimited amounts of alcohol people tend to be more belligerent. It’s not like they’re banning it all together. They’re just limiting it,” she said.

Olson said that the university expects to boost enforcement of its alcohol regulations by increasing staff presence in on-campus apartment complexes.

“This will provide an opportunity for the staff in those areas to plan programs, assist with roommate concerns, interpret policies and provide emergency response,” he said. “We are enthused about this new staffing structure and believe it will be helpful in monitoring policies.”

German Professor Kurt Jankowsky and Associate Vice President for Student Affairs Jeanne Lord, both of whom were members of the DRC when it passed its recommendations, could not be reached for comment. Gwen Owens, head of the Blommer Science Library and former DRC member, declined comment.