Young people test their boundaries when they leave home for the first time and live unsupervised, surrounded by peers. So it is no surprise that partying tempts many college students. But when disruptive conduct intensifies to the point where it impacts the safety and livability of the community, communities should hold colleges and universities responsible by asking them to take strong disciplinary actions against offenders.
Last month, members of the Duke University lacrosse team hired an exotic dancer to entertain themselves during a party at an off-campus house where team members live. The dancer alleged that several students assaulted and raped her, and two team members have been arrested for rape.
The house where the alleged attack occurred has long been a point of contention for neighbors due to its inhabitants? unruly behavior. Duke recently purchased the house with the intention of renting it to a faculty member. Though admirable, this fails to address the real problem, the roots of which lie in behaviors that should not be tolerated in the first place.
Duke President Richard H. Brodhead admitted there have been repeated complaints of drunk and disorderly behavior by lacrosse team members both on and off the property ? a far cry from rape accusations. However, if a strict disciplinary policy that punishes disruptive behavior in the community existed, the poor conduct of those living there would not have reached the point where the accuser was in a position to make those allegations.
Such problems are hardly unique to Durham, N.C..
Several years ago Towson University moved to ban buses that transport students back and forth to Baltimore bars from its campus. Students often came back drunk. And many were not of legal drinking age, paving the way to injuries, fights, sexual assaults, alcohol poisoning and drunk driving. This was a prudent action, since such behavior should not be excused.
Now however, buses transport students to and from the Towson residential community and the same behaviors are played out in neighborhoods at 3 a.m. Students are no longer dropped off in a monitored campus environment. Now their behavior is the problem of the community and local police department, and is spread over a wider area as they get into vehicles and drive off drunk.
Neighborhoods surrounding Towson University are speckled with run-down properties where groups of students pile in to share rent. Again, rowdy behavior and lifestyle clashes are a community problem because they transpire off campus.
As such tug-of-war scenarios are played out across America in college and university towns, the value of policies that contain a strong code of conduct and establish clear limits on intolerable off-campus behavior rise to the top. It is impossible to completely eradicate the partying lifestyle intrinsic to young adults, but a no-tolerance system of accountability will serve to eliminate many conflicts that divide communities.
Corinne Becker writes about quality of life issues in the community, and is President of Riderwood Hills Community Association in Towson, Baltimore County. She can be reached at [email protected].
