STUDENT LIFE
THE INDEPENDENT NEWSPAPER OF WASHINGTON UNIVERSIT Y IN ST. LOUIS SINCE 1878 The women’s basketball team won three straight games to kick off their season, and the men broke several records over break. Page 5.
Forum has talk about alcohol on campus, the University’s student health plan, equality, campaign contributions, and more. Page 6.
VOLUME 127, NO. 41
Cadenza has all new movie reviews, video game reviews, and a Freshman Fifteen comic to kick off the new semester. Page 10.
Cadenza reviews the arts & entertainment events of 2006—in advance! Page 12.
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 18, 2006
WWW.STUDLIFE.COM
SAE’s housing contract cancelled By Kristin McGrath Senior News Editor Individual housing contracts for the Washington University chapter of Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity have been cancelled, and the chapter house has been closed for a period of 18 months following a search of the house on Dec. 10. According to Chief of Police Don Strom, University police were called to the house after an employee “smelled what appeared to be marijuana.” Searching the house, police found that “a particular section of that building had that smell more than the rest of the building,” said Strom. Police found and seized marijuana at the house and took three students into custody. No formal charges have
been filed against these students. University employees are required to report illegal activities they observe in any building on campus, according to Patrick Biddix, coordinator for Greek housing programs. Although the Greek Life Office handles each case differently, drug or alcohol violations in fraternity housing can constitute grounds for the immediate cancellation of housing contracts. “In a lot of cases when drugs or anything else that’s illegal as far as [a fraternity’s] statute is concerned, the University takes the stance that we prohibit the illegal possession, use or transfer of any controlled substance or paraphernalia, defined by the fraternity statute,” said Biddix. “From that, as well as through
our [housing] contract…it’s within our contractual rights to suspend housing, at least in terms of individuals.” Biddix himself does not perform searches of fraternity houses unless he deems it necessary, he said. “One of the things I tell my staff to pass along to their brothers is that I won’t come into your house unless I’ve been called or I need to be there,” said Biddix. “I do walk Fraternity Row, but not every day, just to see outside how things look. But unless there’s some reason…I don’t go in the house.” Biddix said that students’ safety influences his decisions regarding searches of fraternity houses and the consequences of what he finds. “I really feel an obligation to the students for safety and
well-being,” said Biddix. “For example, if it looks like students have been smoking— and it has to be pretty clear— [or] if it looks like they’ve tampered with safety equipment or have covered up the smoke detectors, at that point I think I take a pretty strong stance.” Although the fraternity has lost its house, it has not been suspended from campus and will continue to function as a Greek organization. “The University looks forward to [Sigma Alpha Epsilon] functioning as a fraternity without a house and to working with student leaders and alumni,” said Vice Chancellor for Students Jill Carnaghi. “I think [the members of the fraternity] can be a very
See SAE, page 4
WILSON SPEAKS AT MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR. DAY CELEBRATION
GEORGE GENNIS | STUDENT LIFE
Sigma Alpha Epsilon’s housing contract was terminated after WUPD, acting on a tip from a University employee, found marijuana in the fraternity house.
Risky drinking on campus may be on the rise By Troy Rumans Staff Reporter
ALWYN LOH | STUDENT LIFE
Margaret Bush Wilson, a civil rights attorney in the 1960s and the first female chair of the board of directors of the NAACP, speaks at the University’s annual Martin Luther King Day commemoration in Graham Chapel on Monday, Jan. 16. This year’s theme was “One Woman’s Action... One Man’s Effort,” and featured student speakers and a skit reenacting Rosa Parks’ refusal to vacate her bus seat. The University has held a special MLK commemoration every year since 1987.
He goes out to drink every weekend (and sometimes weeknights, he admits). He’s 20, a junior, and a solid B+ student at Washington University. He has also never needed University assistance due to intoxication. Unfortunately, this student—whose name has been withheld due to his age—is becoming a part of a new minority at the University. Not because of his regular habits, but because of the rapidly growing number of severe alcohol-related incidents throughout the campus. “I’m not going to say I never did anything stupid, but nothing that ridiculous,” he said. According to the Washington University Police Department, there were 131 alcohol referrals during 2004, almost triple the number of the previous year. Many
more events that could be linked to alcohol abuse were not reported, since W UPD does not note if a student is intoxicated in cases of sickness (such as during WILD or other events). Chancellor Wrighton and Dean McLeod noted the same growing dilemma at the close of last semester in an e-mail notice sent out to all students. In the e-mail, he cited two separate incidents of students narrowly avoiding serious injury or death in falls, student-onstudent assaults resulting in serious injuries, and irresponsible and risky sexual behavior of students. In sum, the University seems to have failed to curb the growing abuse of alcohol on campus in the previous year. “All colleges and universities face challenges stemming from the abuse of alcohol…It is frustrating, of
See RISKY DRINKING, page 4
Alcohol statistics don’t justify ‘Just the Facts’ criticism, say officials By Jessie Rothstein Staff Reporter Program coordinators for the Just the Facts campaign reasserted its effectiveness this week despite the rash of serious alcohol-related incidents last semester. The campaign, which consists of a series of informational posters hung throughout the Washington University campus, aims to curb excessive alcohol use. The Just the Facts program is coordinated by a group of students, staff and faculty that worked together for two years developing and mounting the campaign. Although research has not been conducted on the effect of Just the Facts, studies on similar campaigns has shown them to have a helpful protective influence. The goal of such campaigns is to correct misconceptions that may be leading to high-
risk behavior, said Dr. Alan Glass, director of Student Health and Counseling Services (SHCS). Campaigns with similar goals, often called socialnorming campaigns, “have a protective effect in that they might not make students drink less than they already do, but they keep them from drinking more,” said Glass. Yet a surge in alcohol-related incidents in the past few months has created some doubt as to the campaign’s effectiveness. According to University Police Chief Don Strom, there were “several episodes that were certainly close calls, where people could have suffered very serious or life-threatening injuries.” But Melissa Ruwitch, chief of Health Promotion and Wellness and the coordinator of the Just the Facts committee, said that those who deem the program ineffec-
tive “might not understand the intent of the campaign.” According to Glass, social-norming campaigns are meant to change the campus culture. “You can’t really go by whether you’ve had an increase or a decrease in alcohol-related incidents on a year-to-year basis,” said Glass. Additionally, Ruwitch is quick to point out that despite the incidents of last semester, “what you’re not hearing about is someone who learned something from the poster…and didn’t have an incident.” She does not expect these efforts to eliminate all of the experimental behavior on campus, but hopes that people are learning important facts through them. “We understand that it takes time, and that we need to continue with what we know are promising practic-
STUDENT LIFE ARCHIVES
Chancellor Wrighton issued a statement at the end of fall semester stating that alcohol consumption on campus has reached an abusive level and that steps should be taken to curb what he sees as dangerous behavior. es,” said Ruwitch. At the same time, Just the Facts coordinators understand that it does not make sense to put all of their hopes on one approach;
rather, it is one of several strategies being used. One such strategy that began in 2005 is an online interactive program required of incoming freshman called Alcohol
EDU, which was designed by some of the leading experts in alcohol prevention. Betsy Foy, assistant direc-
See JUST THE FACTS, page 4