Chaminade’s Complex Alcohol Policy

A major part of college and the social experience involves alcohol in some way. It is inevitable that students across campuses all over the nation get together and share a drink or two… or more.

Campuses like University of Hawaii and University of Dayton have bars where students can meet and socialize among their peers, as well as serve alcohol at events. Not only is it a social opportunity to build unity at a campus, it is also an opportunity for colleges to make income and create jobs for the student body.

As a Chaminade student and senior, I greatly miss having a casual place where I can grab a drink, socialize with my peers, and at the same time, support my school. It’s a part of the experience and the fun that college is supposed to be.

I’m not saying alcohol is the only college experience, but alcohol surely does bring social aspects into college communities. Whether you decide to have a drink or not, a college bar or events with alcohol services does spark interest.

Chaminade once had a student bar and once had the reputation of being fun, but now when people hear about Chaminade, they think of a small quiet school where students only study and sleep. There is no experience, unity, and spirit when walking around campus; perhaps loosening up the strict policies could bring Chaminade back to life.

As of now, Chaminade is not completely dry as it is possible to serve alcohol at events and have a so-called wet rooms in the dorms. But procedures to obtain alcohol permissions are set up for failure and are highly impractical.

Whereas regular paperwork usually takes 1-2 weeks to process, it takes three or more weeks to process a wet room application or alcohol request form. In addition, the alcohol forms are harder to access than other forms on campus.

In order to get a wet room, all students in a dorm suite must be of legal age, have a good academic standing and have no rule violations on record. It’s fair enough that all must be of legal age in order to prevent underage drinking, but a student’s academic standing has nothing to do with spare time activities.

When requesting alcohol for an event, the host of an event must bring in a catering service, funds from Chaminade may not be used on alcohol directly and food must be served. Not only does the university lose money on not selling alcohol itself, expenses are more than doubled and an opportunity for revenue disappears when bringing in a catering service. Locations where events including alcohol is permitted is also limited.

If Chaminade were to update its complex alcohol policy, events on campus would be more attractive for students. Alcohol is not the focus by any means, but for those who are interested in having a drink will bring friends, and friends bring other friends, which in the end creates a social gathering where unity and school spirit can arise.

In addition, opportunities for the school to make money come up, which could be invested into the campus community. After all, Chaminade is a university filled with college students, why limit the college experience on campus?

In the end, all the paperwork and procedures that students have to put in for requesting alcohol simply ruins the experience. Sadly, it is why students like I look for social options where Chaminade loses out.