I am writing in response to the February 3 article “WSA Obstructs Keg Registration Proposal” and several inaccuracies contained in it (Feb. 3, 2009, Volume CXLV, Number 2). The Alcohol and Other Drug Committee is a university committee on which staff, students and faculty serve. The committee has been charged by the Vice President for Student Affairs with addressing issues on campus related to alcohol and other drug use and is in the midst of that work. The committee will likely consider a number of potential policy changes, educational initiatives and environmental considerations aimed at reducing the issues that often accompany high-risk alcohol and drug use. Contrary to the February 3 article, this committee did not reject the keg registration proposal, but rather referred it back to the policy subcommittee for additional discussion.
I’d like to provide some important background on the idea of a keg registration. While many of our peer institutions ban kegs and other common sources of alcohol, the proposal under consideration is a system to register them. We know that the times when we experience problems on campus are typically when there is a combination of large crowds of people and alcohol; often the alcohol is obtained from kegs that aren’t monitored. By having students register kegs, public safety would be able to work with student hosts to ensure that they are aware of their responsibility and work to prevent potentially dangerous situations.
The article indicated that research has been compiled which shows that keg registration at other colleges has led to increased hospitalizations and dangerous drinking. I don’t believe there is research that shows this and I’m quite sure the committee has not been presented with these statistics. Instead the committee has found through extensive and documented research that all of our peer institutions either ban kegs or have a system to register them. While the policy committee continues its work, it is my hope that the students and staff work toward the important goal of reducing many of the problems associated with high-risk drinking. Recommending a policy change that would create a registration system for kegs on campus would help to close the gap in our current policy language and more closely align us with our peers and best practices in the field. While some of the potential changes might not be ones that would be supported in a student poll, the AOD committee and University staff have the important work of balancing student input with the many other interests of the University.
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