<p>I (a ND alum) was at ND for the SDSU game two weeks ago, got a lot of comments from students on how the administration is very serious about stopping underage drinking at ND. Then my roomate from years ago told me his freshmen daughter said not much fun at ND, everyone is uptight, no drinking and that only reason any fun happening is because of the legacy admits.</p>
<p>What happens to underage students caught drinking? Are some being expelled?</p>
<p>I don't know who you are talking to, but in my personal experience, the ND party scene is alive and well. I have no problem finding multiple parties to go to on Friday and Saturday. Generally if you're caught by your hall staff doing something stupid, like playing drinking games or taking shots in the hallways, then you get slapped with a $50 fine. Other than that, I haven't noticed any new administration effort to clamp down on drinking. The South Bend PD however, has been upping their patrols and busting more parties this year, why? I have no idea.</p>
<p>I would say it depends on your friends, rector, AR/RA, and your willingness to go out. Drinking is not that big of a deal on campus, as far as I see it. I will say, however, that parties in general are alive at ND, but they are far from well though. Some people here seem to be so conservative, and not, socially that is, the most outgoing people. It is almost depressing.</p>
<p>Sounds like you need to make some new friends.</p>
<p>It sounds like the South Bend Police are cracking down on parties off-campus. I only hope that they are also cracking down on other crime in the area; burglaries, robberies, assaults, etc. I sure hope that they are not targeting students as a group and that perhaps they are in general trying to control crime!</p>
<p>It is true that SBPD is cracking down a bit more. And there are rumors that the cancellation of the Dillon pep rally was an attempt by the administration to cut down on underage drinking (the pep rally is closely linked to the Dillon Hall dis-o) and that they will extend this to the Fisher Zoo and the Keenan Revue. However, underage drinking still goes on and there is a party scene both on and off campus. Also, I am definitely not a legacy admit and I would like to think I'm not uptight. I am a biochemistry/Chinese major in the honors program and I still manage to go out and party. The parties that my friends and I attend/host may not be like those at big state schools or the party Ivies, but we still have quite a bit of fun. If you can't find any fun on this campus, you must not be looking very hard. It's possible that your friend's daughter just hasn't found her group of friends yet or met people who have started throwing parties- it can take freshmen a little while to start throwing their own parties and most of the upperclassmen throw parties off campus or have smaller parties with just their friends on campus (instead of the dorm room clear-outs you see freshman and sophomore year).</p>
<p>Not from what I hear -- I hear many students and several alumni were arrested at the game and taken to jail in South Bend for drinking. What bothers me is taking kids off of campus, out of their "home", into south Bend to be jailed and/or held. I also understand that these people, more than 30, were NOT excessively intoxicated. Some were minors with "some" alchohol in them and other tested over the DWI limit. BUT, they weren't driving -- just at the game. It's all in last Tuesday's Observer.</p>
<p>Umm the fisher zoo, from what i hear, has already been canceled. Of course I do not live in fisher so i am not certain.</p>
<p>I also heard they are trying to stop pig tostal.</p>
<p>It appears to us that the South Bend Community in general is not very tolerant of the Notre Dame Community. I remember when we first arrived in South Bend over two years ago for move in/orientation, there was almost nothing in the community to indicate that Notre Dame is even located in South Bend. In other college towns, there is usually quite a bit of evidence of the local college. We have assumed that the community has just never cared for Notre Dame. Perhaps others have noticed this? Has it always been this way, even years ago (for older alums)? Keep in mind, I am not advocating non-enforcement of laws--our impressions have been that the South Bend community might be just as happy w/o Notre Dame. Does anyone else sense this? I should think that any college town would be happy for the revenue that the college must generate and South Bend appears to need revenue even if it is from college students/faculty/tourists. I do not know about the stance that administration may or may not have taken this year with regards to alcohol; however, it would seem to me that Campus police should be handling issues on campus. South Bend police, of course, should handle issues off campus. And, again, I sure hope that they have also stepped up their patrols with regard to robberies, assaults, burglaries. Crime is crime whether it is alcohol or an assault or robbery.</p>
<p>It has been that way for years. ND and South Bend relations have always been rough which is why ND became its own city, which only made the divide worse.</p>
<p>I can understand why Notre Dame is its own city with its own zip code and police force, but why are South Bend police arresting students and alumni at football games, then taking them off the campus to jail them? South Bend police have obviously been given access to do so.</p>
<p>irish-but what led to the bad relations? Why is there such a divide? We have visited numerous college towns and I think that South Bend has to be one of the most un-welcoming. As I mentioned earlier, one would think that the revenue generated would indeed make for a more welcoming atmosphere. Is it perhaps that it is a private school and resentment of that?</p>
<p>ND Al...interesting question...I grew up in South Bend, my father was a South Bend policeman for 21 years, but I haven't lived there for 30 years. My son, though, is in his third year at ND. So I've had the opportunity to consider this question from both sides.</p>
<p>I don't think it has anything to do with ND being a private school. South Bend is full of a number of private elementary, high school and college institutions that are well supported by the community. Additionally, my parents and many of our relatives were avid fans of Notre Dame.</p>
<p>But my son, who never lived in South Bend before attending ND, does perceive the animosity within the community.</p>
<p>One thought that I have about this question relates to the general community of South Bend versus the ND student body. South Bend is generally a blue collar town...maybe less so now than it used to be...but a lot of residents come from this background. The ND student body is an elite group of people. As the annual enrollment statistics show, they are indentified as among the highest performing academic, athletic, leadership, service, etc oriented young people around. And they are proud of their accomplishments and their attendance at ND. But there is a "swagger" that some ND students portray when in the community, that may be imperceptible to them, that annoys the SB residents.</p>
<p>I don't want to imply that every ND student is not humble, nor that every SB resident is annoyed. Just that this "may" be one source of the animosity that is perceived.</p>
<p>^^I have lived fairly close to SB the last 30 years. I don't know if it's become more or less blue collar in that time, but I think the local economy has declined in those years. Many of the better paying blue collar jobs have left the area; SB has always been a manufacturing area and it has felt the effects as much as any other rust belt city.</p>
<p>Even if ND students don't have the swagger (and I'm not agreeing/disagreeing with that statement--I think there may be some truth in it, even if unintended), I think some animosity arises among the city's residents due to the economic disparity.</p>
<p>One other question--are SB police patrolling games because there are simply too many fans there for the ND police to handle? I would imagine the number of officers necessary multiplies exponentially during football weekends.</p>
<p>south bend is definitely incongruous with Notre Dame's prestige and academic excellence. you don't really see too many of the top colleges located in towns similar to south bend (duke probably the only exception). a lot of people are under the mindset that notre dame is the only reason to go to south bend. this prolly ticks off many of the residents.</p>
<p>MIPerson80, If your roommate from years ago attended any of the orientation sessions he and his 18 or 19 (assuming age as a freshman) year old daughter would have heard the following comment a minimum of three times: The state law of Indiana states that the legal drinking age is 21. This was mentioned at each of the individual halls during the Saturday morning sessions presented by the Rectors and RAs, Father Jenkins addressed this as well during one of his presentations and so did another Dean (cant remember name). It was made very clear by Father Jenkins the expectations of the University regarding students conduct; on and off campus. </p>
<p>As far as fun, I have not discussed the specifics with my freshman son and really dont want to know. The few times that he has had time to talk to me or my wife it seems as though he is having a ton of fun, (without being a legacy) getting very involved in activities and is thrilled to be at Notre Dame.</p>
<p>Also, I would like to comment a little about the South Bend Community and Notre Dame relationship. I have lived in the South Bend area for more than 20 years and dont agree with many of the statements about how local people feel about the students or the university. Most people that I know do not have any issues with the students or the university. I am sure there are some that do, but I doubt they are in the middle of the Target parking lot giving the students grief; at least I hope not. There seem to be many ND Alumni who move back to the South Bend are specifically to be near Notre Dame; they may not be moving back to downtown South Bend, but enjoy being local. Just my opinion, but while living locally for many years I would say the bad relations divide is not as bad or divided as mentioned by some; is it perfect, probably not. </p>
<p>I may come back later and comment on some of the drinking, arrest, police statements, but to the original poster; if 80 in you names indicates the year you graduated try to remember what the drinking age was in Michigan back then? Not sure of the exact year, but it was 18 until 78 +/- a year. Not that a freshman cant get alcohol today, but it was much easier in '78 since it was legal. </p>
<p>Sorry for such a long post ..</p>
<p>Overall both the ND police and South Bend PD are excessively targeting students. On the NDPD side, they are busting kids for minor instances of underage drinking rather than really trying to foster a safe community. On the SBPD side, it seems like they have little control over real crime so instead bust up ND house parties and tailgates to sound like they are actually being productive.</p>
<p>The police are "busting kids" for breaking the law, that's new!!! There is no excessive targeting of students, SB & ND police are just doing their jobs. Don't over-do the drinking and you should be fine. If you do get caught, the sanctions are usually minor....your first time. Now, if you have been caught multiple times, I don't think the school's policy is the problem....</p>