Many Residential Assistants, through both confusion and deliberate action, are ignoring the University's alcohol policy.
Residential Assistants (RAs) are required by the guidelines of the Office of Residential Life and Learning (ORLL) to document all violations of alcohol use. Last year, RAs were allowed to use discretion in deciding whether to document the first offense in dormitories.
Dean of Students Bruce Reitman described discretion as an "experiment" that was tried last school year, and the current system is a "return to the traditional policy."
Reitman said while there was "a lot of miscommunication going around," the policy did not change during this school year. Some RAs, however, said they believed the policy had reverted back to discretion.
Although the alcohol policy changed at the beginning of this school year, conversations with RAs revealed what actually happens inside residences is markedly different from the policy.
RAs are quoted anonymously because ORLL policy does not allow employees other than ORLL Director Yolanda King to speak to the press without permission. King declined to comment for this story.
One RA was unsure if the policy had reverted to discretion, but had decided to give some leeway. With the current policy, "you are like cop and your residents are afraid of you," the RA said. "You can't build a relationship. It's better to use your discretion."
Another RA was more supportive of a strict alcohol policy. The RA said the duty team in the residence had been more willing to enforce rules after an incident where two students nearly died because of alcohol poisoning.
"There was no noise and they were drinking quietly," the RA said. "They were not too far from dying by the time the friends found them." The students received medical attention.
"We don't want those [kinds of] incidents happening again, so we are cautious," the RA said.
Even so, the RA was skeptical that the policy could be completely enforced. Most alcohol incidents begin as noise violations, which then can escalate after students are approached.
"If you smell alcohol but have no proof there's not much anyone can really do about it," the RA said.
A third RA did not think changing the policy affected how the actual policy is enforced. "The rules didn't make much difference," the RA said. "It's almost natural to use discretion."
Senior Pretish Gandhi, who recently resigned as a RA, criticized ORLL's approach to the situation. "Anytime you have a policy that requires mandatory documentation, you are unable to gain the trust of residents," he said.
He challenged the office to develop "a protocol that embodies trust." This can only be achieved through a policy that gives the RA some degree of freedom in handling a situation, according to Gandhi.
Gandhi said enforcement varied widely. "As far as I'm concerned, you have a big group of RAs that use discretion, and a big group that do not," he said.
Ultimately, Gandhi believes the decision is a personal one. "Every RA decides how to deal with their own residents," he said.
Last year's policy placed students who received treatment from Tufts Emergency Medical Services on Disciplinary Probation I. The changed policy refers students to a counseling session, a move intended to encourage students to seek medical attention for drinking-related incidents.
Reitman said RA input was one of the reasons for the referral change.
In the current policy, after the first violation of the alcohol policy students are still referred to Judicial Affairs Officer Veronica Carter. Parents are notified, and a third documented incident results in either disciplinary probation or medical leave.
According to Habitats, the ORLL handbook, the school may take more serious action on the first offense for violations including providing alcohol to students under 21, alcohol misuse during the pledge process, and abusive drinking.
Some violations require a meeting with the Coordinator of Community Standards and Judicial Processes and completing a three-hour online course. Parents are generally not contacted, and the first violation is not recorded on the student's University record.
All subsequent violations are reported to the ORLL office.
