Closer Eye on Campus Drinking

This article by Nate Schweber in The New York Times, focuses on suburban campuses in the suburban areas around New York City. It starts by examining this fall at Rider University, where both students and administrators have been criminally charged in the drinking death of a fraternity member last spring:

Two years ago the College of New Jersey, in nearby Ewing, tightened its alcohol policies after a student disappeared into a garbage chute at an off-campus fraternity party and his body was found in a Pennsylvania landfill. Last spring, shortly after Mr. DeVercelly’s death, the college announced that alcohol would be prohibited during its annual Senior Week, which was later canceled for lack of interest.

Matthew Golden, a spokesman for the college, said that administrators are “very aware this is a new world of accountability should something tragic happen.”

Not every college is making changes after recent alcohol-related incidents. Administrators at Hofstra in Hempstead, N.Y., and Quinnipiac in Hamden, Conn., said their universities were well served by alcohol education that was already in place and the vigilance of their administrators.

Some schools have tweaked their approach. Manhattanville College, in Purchase, N.Y., has moved its alcohol awareness week to October from April to reach new students. It also decided to focus on prevention, said Brandon Dawson, dean of students. First-time offenders will take a 90-minute class on the effects of alcohol.