Dry campus: Is UIndy campus under the influence?
By Adrian Kendrick | Managing Editor
Despite its non-tolerance on campus, one subject continues to arise and it seems to capture students’ full attention: alcohol.
“The University of Indianapolis has a zero tolerance policy for alcohol, and that includes alcohol use by our students on and off campus,” said President Beverley Pitts.
Last year, The Reflector reported on an incident that occurred in the University Heights neighborhood that involved 41 UIndy students under the suspicion of alcohol violations at a house party. One or more student athletes from the football, baseball, softball, volleyball and women’s soccer teams were cited by the Indiana State Excise Police and UIndy campus police. The disciplinary measures were handled within the university’s punishing system.
According to Dean of Students Kory Vitangeli, any student who is caught with alcohol by the Indianapolis or UIndy police is punished with the same degree as any other student. Vitangeli said UIndy students are expected to follow the university’s policies at all times.
“That is the responsibility of being a UIndy student,” Vitangeli stated.
Other responsibilities students should be aware of are the dorm rules regarding alcohol, which also apply if a student is found intoxicated on campus. The punishments vary in degree of severity, while the fines and penalties increase as the student continues to disregard the regulations. Graduate student and resident director, John Dehr said that he has not seen students go any further than the first offense.
“Usually when they get the first fine of $100 it’s a wake-up call for them because it’s inconvenient,” Dehr said.
According to Dehr, the first day the freshman arrive on campus the resident assistants have an alcohol discussion, rules are presented and it’s explained to the residents that UIndy is a dry campus.
Nevertheless sometimes residents do not regard those positive efforts.
“This didn’t feel like a dry campus when I first arrived here,” said senior Won Joon Lee.
Lee also explained that he wasn’t exposed to the party lifestyle till he arrived on campus where everyone around him was getting wasted [heavily intoxicated]. At first he said he was pulled into that lifestyle, but eventually he was able to draw a line.
“I came to realize that lifestyle was not what I wanted to pursue,” he said.
With drinking continuing to rise on campuses nationwide, statistics are turning negative and some college students are dealing with the consequences.
The Indianapolis Star reported that 1,700 alcohol related deaths occur among college students each year in the United States.
Such fatalities involve traffic accidents, falls, suffocation, drowning and alcohol poisoning. The Star also reported that hundreds and thousands of students commit crimes, become victims, fail classes, make poor sexual decisions or become sick with too much alcohol consumption.
Despite whether or not students think drinking is a problem on campus, many events on campus promote abstinence from alcohol use.
“On campus we do not allow any events to occur that involve alcohol. Nor do we promote alcohol use in any way,”
Vitangeli said.
This zero-tolerance policy also includes tailgating events. According to Vitangeli, there has been a misconception that alcohol is allowed at the tailgates.
“When it was announced UIndy would do tailgating, students seemed to think there would be alcohol at the event,” Vitangeli said. “We want people to come and have cookouts, but alcohol is not included.”
Though the confusion of having alcohol at tailgating events existed among some students, Dehr believes the majority of UIndy students understand they should not drink on campus.
“UIndy has a good system in place to keep the students in line,” Dehr said. “I have friends that attend bigger colleges and it’s (alcohol) more everyday for them.”
College students are bombarded everyday with different situations. Alcohol is a subject that continues to surface, and universities cannot continue to sweep this epidemic under the carpet.
“Certainly we have [alcohol] situations that go on, on and off campus,” Vitangeli said. “UIndy is not exempt from that.”
