What comes to mind when you picture Harvard University? Probably not a bunch of drunken frat boys doing 2-story beer bongs, right? Harvard in Cambridge, Massachusetts, like all other schools in the country have a problem with underage drinking.
The school, a leader in many fields, is taking a proactive stance. The school hosted a freshman-oriented discussion on alcohol abuse and the school’s policy on drinking. How many freshmen do you think showed up? All of them – not!
Only six students—four of whom were freshman Undergraduate Council representatives—and six administrators participated in the meeting, which was meant to solicit student opinions that would contribute to the decisions of the College’s recently established alcohol policy committee.
Despite the small turnout, students and administrators interviewed said they felt the environment was conducive to a productive and candid conversation.
This meeting was the second in a series of discussions that the Harvard will hold with the student body over the coming semester as it plows ahead toward a potential overhaul of its current alcohol policy. When the alcohol policy committee was first formed last semester, none of its members represented the freshman perspective.
Let’s face it – even Harvard students won’t voluntarily sit down to discuss alcohol consumption. This is something Harvard should make mandatory. Perhaps the College should mandate each incoming freshman take an online alcohol class or minor in possession class.