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Former commissioner and champion of the Stanford IM Beirut (that's beer pong for the uneducated) here. The university repeatedly threatened to shut us down, but

Former commissioner and champion of the Stanford IM Beirut (that's beer pong for the uneducated) here. The university repeatedly threatened to shut us down, but since we weren't an official group that was tough. They did ban drinking games in dorm rooms, which thankfully wasn't enforceable, but things were headed in this direction back in the late aughts. Back then, this stuff was theoretically in the name of safety, though that was totally misguided. When I got to my freshman dorm, the RAs told us to leave the door open if we were drinking, so they'd know if anything was wrong. In return, there would be no trouble. They held up their end of the bargain, and everyone was drunk but safe and free of administrative trouble. Even the Stanford sheriffs were well known for not giving you trouble unless you were flagrantly drinking in public or causing a real problem. Forcing people to hide their drinking didn't make anybody safer. It's really a shame that the administration has chosen this direction. I genuinely don't know what the point is.

kenjackson 4y ago
This sounds obvious. Of course the school isn’t going to sanction illegal drinking on campus. And of course random RAs are going to possibly give more flexibility. This is like asking the police department to sanction drunken driving — versus individual cops making a judgment call.
- awillen 4y ago
  You're misunderstanding - it wasn't random RAs; it was university policy for RAs. Same thing in every dorm. They were taught in RA training to focus on safety and not to call the police or report to administrators if underage students were drinking but otherwise fine.
  - kenjackson 4y ago
    What exactly was university policy? Approving of drinking parties or minimizing damage done by students who had drank?
    - awillen 4y ago
      Parties were a separate thing - this was just about students drinking in their dorms (or coming home drunk, etc.). If they weren't causing problems or in danger, RAs just left them alone.
maneesh 4y ago
Were you a sophomore in Toyon 2006-07? I think you may have been my roommate…

kenjackson 4y ago

This sounds obvious. Of course the school isn’t going to sanction illegal drinking on campus. And of course random RAs are going to possibly give more flexibility. This is like asking the police department to sanction drunken driving — versus individual cops making a judgment call.

awillen 4y ago
You're misunderstanding - it wasn't random RAs; it was university policy for RAs. Same thing in every dorm. They were taught in RA training to focus on safety and not to call the police or report to administrators if underage students were drinking but otherwise fine.
- kenjackson 4y ago
  What exactly was university policy? Approving of drinking parties or minimizing damage done by students who had drank?
  - awillen 4y ago
    Parties were a separate thing - this was just about students drinking in their dorms (or coming home drunk, etc.). If they weren't causing problems or in danger, RAs just left them alone.

maneesh 4y ago

Were you a sophomore in Toyon 2006-07? I think you may have been my roommate…