Alcohol code backlash

University of Maryland junior Brian Novell feels he can talk to his parents about drinking. He might even tell them if he got caught breaking the school’s alcohol rules.

But would he want the university to tell his parents for him? No way.

“At this age, I am capable of figuring out what is best for me,” the 20-year-old said of a hotly contested element of Maryland’s new proposed alcohol policy. “I wouldn’t need the university to go tell my parents for me.”

Written in response to two student deaths at fraternities and alcohol-fueled riots two years ago, the suggested policy unifies various codes that govern drinking in dormitories and at fraternity parties and campus events.

The changes are meant to cap the misuse of alcohol on campus and teach students about the dangers of heavy drinking, said Pat Mielke, assistant vice president of student affairs and chairwoman of a task force that drafted the policy.

“It [alcohol] affects the campus in so many ways,” Miss Mielke said. “Most people think it affects only the individual, but it is also related to things like crime, poor academic performance, sexual assaults and date rapes.”

But some students say the policy, which includes tougher enforcement rules and trumps current alcohol regulations that govern fraternity and sorority parties, treads on their right to privacy and might push student drinking further underground.

Members of the university’s Greek organizations strongly criticized some components of the plan at a recent forum to discuss the recommendations. The Student Government Association also passed a resolution calling on the university to reject the plan.

The difference of opinion stems in part from varying perceptions of whether alcohol abuse is a problem on campus. The task force concludes in its report that “our campus is not immune from the terrifying effects of alcohol misuse.”

Many students, however, say that Maryland does not have an alcohol problem compared with other schools and that enough checks on drinking already are in place.

“Their [the task force] perception of alcohol use is inflated,” said Krysia Brzoska, outgoing president of the Delta Gamma sorority. “There should be some change, but this is coming down too hard.”

The university task force that drafted the proposal is made up of administrators, students, faculty and a parent.

It was formed in 2002, the year that 19-year-old Daniel Reardon died after drinking heavily at a fraternity pledge event. Earlier that school year, 20-year-old Alexander Klochkoff died after mixing alcohol and the drug GHB (gamma hydroxybutyrate, a sedative-hypnotic).

Drunken students also spilled into the streets of downtown College Park after both of Maryland’s Final Four basketball games in March 2002. Police in riot gear were called in to break up the crowds.

Story Continues →