Recently, Dartmouth College made headlines with its president’s new plan to ban hard alcohol on campus. This initiative has prompted discussion on the extent of schools’ regulation of students, as colleges grapple with the fine line between treating students like the adults they are and still maintaining restrictions — which are absolutely necessary — on their activities.
As the dangers of binge drinking, hazing and sexual assault become more apparent, it appears colleges are opting to take on the in loco parentis role they held in the past. But restricting students’ independence rarely results in tangible benefits for schools or students. For one, restrictions are only worth their level of enforcement: as The Dartmouth Editorial Board writes, first-year students at Dartmouth are already forbidden from consuming hard alcohol, yet clearly they do so regardless.
But even with strict enforcement of such policies, harsh restrictions can serve only to push student activity underground, making students even less safe. Students will find ways, no matter what, to enjoy themselves as they see fit — especially as 18-year-olds entering college gain a sense of freedom that naturally accompanies leaving home. Given the chance of punishment, students will simply opt not to seek help in situations of excessive drinking or other crises — the opposite of the intended result of Dartmouth’s policy.
Excessive regulation is ineffective, but another damaging effect is its potential for stifling students’ independence, which can in turn stifle their ability to mature in general. College students undoubtedly need guidance in many spheres. But higher education is intended to be a stepping stone between childhood and adulthood — preparation for entering adult society and taking on social and financial responsibility. If students are patronized or coddled, how can they expect to be prepared for life post-graduation? Paradoxically, students may develop even worse habits than they would have given a greater amount of independence; by sweeping their activities under the rug, they may engage in behaviors that are detrimental to their physical and emotional health.
Of course, any discussion of the restriction of student autonomy naturally reminds us of the National Panhellenic Conference’s recent request that sorority chapters refrain from participating in Boy’s Bid Night, though this is not a case of a university acting in loco parentis. Here at the University, we place a large emphasis on the sometimes-lofty concept of student self-governance. Despite some areas of concern, we have seen many successes due to the large amount of responsibility afforded to the student body. Precisely because our University has emphasized student autonomy, the outcry against external restrictions was immediate: a group of University women, typically empowered by the privileges our school affords them, were disrespected by a policy that dictated their actions instead of seeking pragmatic solutions to the issue at hand.
College students are by no means prepared to live together without rules or authority. But colleges seem to opt for extremist policies in order to squash the problems that can stem from students’ adjustments to their newfound freedoms, and these extremist policies have not proven effective. College is intended to be a time of personal and intellectual growth, but students cannot grow if they are not given the room to do so. Low expectations breed low-quality results, and policies that too drastically regulate students imply distrust in them. When students are encouraged to hold themselves and their peers accountable within appropriate limits, they can rise to the occasion.
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