In a March email to students, Stanford President John L. Hennessy and Provost John Etchemendy observe that “colleges and universities across the country continue to wrestle with alcohol and the high-risk behaviors that can result from its misuse”, claiming that Stanford is no exception.
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The ban, which exempts parties hosted by student organizations as well as residences with 100% graduate students, means students can not consume mixed drinks at on-campus parties, while shots are prohibited campuswide, regardless of school affiliation or age. Hard liquor, as defined by the new rule, constitutes drinks that are more than 20 percent alcohol by volume or more than 40 proof. The unusual logic here, according to campus booze czar Ralph Castro, is that it’s harder to assemble a huge bar in one’s room if it’s all made of pint bottles, and therefore it will make it harder for students to binge drink. Therefore, the outlet density of establishments that sell hard alcohol around campus will be greatly reduced.
They went on to argue that the school needs new solutions to combat binge drinking and its effects on campus, and said they would be exploring new options to change the culture around alcohol on campus. This effectively limits students to buying bottles of liquor that are a pint or smaller.
The Northern California judge who sentenced a former Stanford University swimmer to six months in jail for sexually assaulting an unconscious woman has reignited debate about his ability to serve on the bench after removing himself from a separate sex-crimes case. Bowdoin, Bates, Colby and Notre Dame have all had bans in place for more than six years. As The Atlantic reports, Stanford’s Office of Alcohol Policy and Education is framing this is as a “harm reduction strategy”, even though it sounds like a virtually unenforceable one. Fraternities and sororities at the University of Virginia must have a hired bartender at campus parties in order to have any hard liquor, and Dartmouth has completely banned hard liquor since 2015. “I’ve been shattered by the party culture and risk taking behavior that I briefly experienced in my four months at school”.
“I challenge you not to focus on the policy as something to be worked around”, Boardman pleaded.
The role of alcohol in the sexual assault drew scrutiny, particularly because Turner’s defense cited his impairment because of heavy drinking the night of the assault.
A California judge under fire for a light sentence given to a Stanford University swimmer has recused himself from making his first key decision in another sex crimes case.
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Turner was banned from stepping foot on Stanford’s campus, losing his scholarship and standing as a student, but critics urged the university to take more steps to address sexual assault on campus in the wake of national discussion about rape culture on college campuses.
