When D.C. students think of the differences between campus life at GW and Georgetown, university alcohol policy may not be the first thing that comes to mind. But come August, Georgetown students will be able to have kegs at their on-campus parties. Now that's beer for thought.
While both GW and Georgetown have similar alcohol policies that ban underage drinking, Georgetown officials have explicitly acknowledged that drinking before the legal age of 21 is a fact of college life. Georgetown administrators said they realize the university can better protect students who remain on campus to party instead of going out into the city, and the school has made recent changes to its alcohol policies to reflect that.
Dan Porterfield, Georgetown's vice president of public affairs, said the university prefers that its students drink on school grounds instead of some unknown bar on M Street.
"The real challenge is that there is a cultural norm that students will drink when they are 18," Porterfield said.
Porterfield helped organize a meeting with senior administrators, faculty members and students in the summer of 2001, in which participants discussed their perspectives and concerns about alcohol consumption on college campuses across the country and at Georgetown.
"We didn't start with the idea, 'Well, let's change the alcohol policy,'" Porterfield said. "We started with, 'Let's share thoughts and experiences about alcohol.'"
With this initial discussion, this group uncovered certain commonalities about drinking attitudes among students, faculty and administrators. The first group eventually split into different committees, and by 2004 they submitted a proposal to the university recommending changes in Georgetown's alcohol policies.
One of the major changes in 2004 focused on the fundamental drinking policy in Georgetown residence halls. Previously, all university dorms were dry, but now alcohol is only banned from freshman halls. Porterfield explained that prior to the changes, underage students could get in trouble for being sober in a room where other underage people were drinking. He said today's policy is angled only towards those actually consuming alcohol.
While both GW and Georgetown have similar alcohol policies that ban underage drinking, Georgetown officials have explicitly acknowledged that drinking before the legal age of 21 is a fact of college life. Georgetown administrators said they realize the university can better protect students who remain on campus to party instead of going out into the city, and the school has made recent changes to its alcohol policies to reflect that.
Dan Porterfield, Georgetown's vice president of public affairs, said the university prefers that its students drink on school grounds instead of some unknown bar on M Street.
"The real challenge is that there is a cultural norm that students will drink when they are 18," Porterfield said.
Porterfield helped organize a meeting with senior administrators, faculty members and students in the summer of 2001, in which participants discussed their perspectives and concerns about alcohol consumption on college campuses across the country and at Georgetown.
"We didn't start with the idea, 'Well, let's change the alcohol policy,'" Porterfield said. "We started with, 'Let's share thoughts and experiences about alcohol.'"
With this initial discussion, this group uncovered certain commonalities about drinking attitudes among students, faculty and administrators. The first group eventually split into different committees, and by 2004 they submitted a proposal to the university recommending changes in Georgetown's alcohol policies.
One of the major changes in 2004 focused on the fundamental drinking policy in Georgetown residence halls. Previously, all university dorms were dry, but now alcohol is only banned from freshman halls. Porterfield explained that prior to the changes, underage students could get in trouble for being sober in a room where other underage people were drinking. He said today's policy is angled only towards those actually consuming alcohol.
