Wesleyan’s Spring Fling is usually associated with Foss Hill, live music and alcohol. But this year, in light of traditional problems associated with drinking and prompted by a new Middletown ordinance that makes consumption of alcohol by minors on private property a prosecutable offense, the Administration has decided to take greater steps to prevent underage drinking at this campus event.
A number of ideas were proposed including the creation of a “beer garden,” in which an area of Foss Hill would be cordoned off to allow students over 21 to drink. Through discussions among members of the WSA, leaders from its student groups, Public Safety and the Dean’s offices, a compromise was made to identify students over 21 by having them wear wristbands during Spring Fling.
While many students may be unhappy with this new rule, it seems clear that such an arrangement was inevitable because of the ordinance enforcing stricter punishment for underage drinking in Middletown. The decree could have been more invasive of the atmosphere of Spring Fling that so many Wesleyan students have come to love. In this way, we commend the WSA for representing the student body and arriving at a compromise when an issue of significant concern was brought to their attention by the Administration. The WSA met the Administration at a middle ground, and that indicates that a successful discourse took place.
However, we must be cognizant of the fact that the Administration has made a habit of slowly wrestling power from student organizations and that Wesleyan institutions and traditions, such as Spring Fling, are always at risk since collective memory of the school changes with every four years. If more decisions are consulted in the same fashion that this one was, perhaps there will be a larger contingency of satisfied students and administrators.
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