PART OF the fun of first year was waiting up each weekend for my drunk hallmates, and watching them fall and fumble around before going to bed. But there were girls on my hall who never went out and never drank or smoked. It just wasn't something that they wanted to do. Whether it was a moral or personal choice, they decided to live substance-free.
For some of my hallmates, though, the choice could have been much easier if they had the chance to live in a substance-free "wellness" dorm. These specialized residence halls have gained popularity in the past few years and usually require students to abstain from any kind of drugs or alcohol. In addition, some of these dorms provide counseling and other forms of rehabilitation for recovering alcohol or drug problems.
For the University to meet the needs of all students, it should provide substance-free and rehabilitative living for those who want it to experience college without alcohol or other drugs.
Members of ADAPT -- the Alcohol and Drug Abuse Prevention Team -- proposed the "wellness" dorm to provide an option for those students interested in a healthier lifestyle. Along with being substance-free, the dorm also would promote healthy eating, regular exercise and smoking prevention.
The University offers limited on-Grounds housing, but a wellness dorm should be an option for students. While alcohol is accepted as part of University culture, it does not have to be part of the college experience at all, and there are many who decide that they want to lead a life free from drugs and alcohol.
But those who choose not to involve themselves in the weekly Rugby Road festivities may feel they can't be truly substance-free while living with students who use drugs or alcohol. Students who feel strongly about living without alcohol, cigarettes or other drugs deserve the option of a dorm that meets their needs.
In addition, a substance-free dorm would go hand-in-hand with the University's recent efforts to provide programming as an alternative to alcohol. Events like the Sunset Concert Series have been successful at introducing students to a new social side of the University, but administrators should attract students to a new, healthier way of life that extends past the weekend. A wellness dorm would do just that by encouraging students to take better care of themselves through eating right and exercising everyday.
But University residence halls already are supposed to be substance-free. By adding this type of residence hall, the University would be forced to admit to parents and potential students that it couldn't provide a substance-free environment for all students in on-Grounds housing.
The reality is that no dormitory at the University keeps this rule without fail. While the University does have a reputation to uphold, it first has an obligation to provide an optimum learning environment to each of its students.
Providing a substance-free dormitory to students would not be an admission of lax standards on the part of the University. Instead, it would be a step in the direction of healthier living for all students at the University.
But the most important and urgent reason for providing this kind of living situation is the aid it would provide to students who are recovering alcoholics or drug-abusers.
College can be a time for new experiences, but it also can be a time to leave old ones behind. Many students come to college trying to recover from a reckless adolescence, only to find that alcohol, cigarettes and drugs are free-flowing. These students deserve a chance to begin and even spend their entire college career free from the pressures of living with those who do use drugs or alcohol.
In addition, the wellness dorm should be offered to students of all ages. First-year students would benefit greatly from the dorm's programming, but second-, third- and fourth-year students should not be denied the chance to recover from drug and alcohol problems in a safe environment, or to just live a healthier lifestyle while at the University.
It seems that recently, adults have had to crack down more than ever on the epidemic of dangerous college drinking and drugging. But there are students who choose to live a life at college free from those substances, and they deserve a chance to live this lifestyle with others who share the same beliefs.
(Erin Perucci is a Cavalier Daily associate editor.)
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