Drinking at KC

Colleges and Universities A-Z Kenyon College
1

<p>I've decided to begin a new thread on the drinking culture at Kenyon, since I've been getting many questions and concerns about it recently.
Other KC students, feel free to chime in and share your own experiences!</p>

<p>Less than 40% of men join fraternities, and the percentage of women in sororities is far smaller, meaning that most people at Kenyon aren't Greek. I wouldn't say there is a stereotypical "frat boy" at Kenyon, although frats themselves seem to have stereotypes (Betas are football players, DKEs are preppy...). Pretty much all of the frat boys I know (and I'm very good friends with a few) are just normal guys. They don't sleep with a different girl everynight, they don't live for kegstands, they would never force anybody to drink.</p>

<p>Frats are generally very understanding about your personal decisions. I do drink, but I am on a medication that is affected by alcohol, so many times I choose not to drink, or I do it in small numbers. If I'm questioned about my choices I just say that I'm not up for it, or I'm on meds, and I'm congratulated for making smart decisions. </p>

<p>There has been some speculation that the college tries to downplay the influence of Greek like on campus. I think the only thing Kenyon hides a little bit is that social life at Kenyon revolves around Greeks, mostly because they are the organizations with money who throw parties. Kenyon is not really a "Greek Campus", but Greeks do have their place.</p>

<p>Unfortunately alcohol abuse is a problem that is very prevalent among teens in the US. Colin Boyarski was one of many teens to fall victim to alcohol. Colin made decisions on his own the night he died, and there is little Kenyon (or any college) can do to curb a student's decision to drink. Binge drinking is a problem at Kenyon, but it is a problem that is also nation wide. </p>

<p>After Colin's death, the Kenyon community has been searching for ways to help solve drinking problems at Kenyon and nationally. There have been several opportunities to meet with President Nugent, and a few deans. The drinking age is beginning to be more reinforced at parties, and it has become more difficult to register kegs and buy alcohol locally. There have been many discussions at Senate meetings about furthering Kenyon's drinking/sex education. Currently there is a student group called Beer and Sex that leads programs for freshman, however it is not very in depth and it is not mandatory. This will probably change. There is also probably going to be a change in policies about reporting illness due to drinking. As it is now, if you become ill and need to go to the hospital, your parents are called, you are given a citation, and you are required to attend a seminar on drinking responsibly. As a result many students don't report other students that should be hospitalized because they don't want to get them in trouble.</p>

<p>Questions? Comments? Concerns?</p>

2

<p>Thanks for the informative post. It's interesting because I accidentally ran into a Kenyon alumni the other day at work (he was wearing a Kenyon shirt and we just struck up conversation!) and he mentioned Colin's death...and he said the very same things you did kc_lady. This is a problem everywhere, it's unfortunate that it happened at Kenyon, but it could realistically happen tomorrow at any other college too. And instead of pointing fingers or attacking the school, I think that people should realize that this is national problem - not just Kenyon’s.</p>

3

<p>I agree with all of you. I just think your governement should allow people to drink since they are 18 or so cause then alcohol stops to be a great deal, really. I didn't know you have to be 21 to drink in the States when i first came and it was really strange for me to see how that was something cool to do. Here nobody cares if u drink or not. You can drink if u want, if u don't just nodoby cares.</p>

4

<p>I'd like to know one thing.
What do u mean by drinking? Ok i mean: does to drink mean to pass out or does it simply mean to drink one or two beers, even 3? What's the ratio between these two styles of drinking? I can't find any problem in the second kind of drinking while i can see the problem in somebody that once or more a week passes out cause it's too drunk to do anything.
Do a lot of people get tremendously drunk on a party on a regular basis?</p>

5

<p>Thank you for both of your posts...
I agree that the drinking age is too high... creating a sort of forbidden fruit attitude, but there's little I can do about it :). </p>

<p>By drinking I mean binge drinking-- several drinks in succession with the goal of getting drunk. Drinking just a few drinks is pretty rare at Kenyon (at least at social events). I feel I can say with confidence that the goal of drinking at Kenyon is getting drunk.</p>

6

<p>this post could be of great help to a lot of people..thnks kc_lady!</p>

7

<p>As I have said elsewhere, my son is a non-drinker and yet seems to have managed very well socially at Kenyon. He also confirms what kc_lady says about the frats, that is, many of the members are just regular guys. He mentioned Alpha Delta Phi as an example.</p>

<p>The problem with binge drinking among young people is a nation-wide phenomenon. Unfortunately, it extends even into high schools. What happened at Kenyon was a horrible tragedy and as a parent I hope the college will look to find ways to help young adults make sound decisions when it comes to drinking.</p>

8

<p>I have heard it from here and there(wheer else than from CC ofcourse) that Colin's incident can have a huge impact in LAC ranking of Kenyon. Predictions are flying around that it would one of those school who will see a trememdous dip in their USNews ranking.</p>

<p>I am sorry for revamping this overdiscussed topic, but I only wanted to see what do ya'll say about the probability of rank slumps in the coming months!</p>

9

<p>I dont think the ranking should bother us. I did not look into the rank book when I appled to Kenyon. I mean, the rank does make some sort of impression but I dont think it should be too big a deal. Yes, the death is a big blow to Kenyon's reputation but I hope that we will overcome that tragedy and prove Kenyon's true worth once again.
Kenyon has been on a real high lately. The number of aplicants has risen drastically. Kenyon's rank and reputation are improving significantly. I do hope that this tragedy will not hinder the trend. I mean, there is no harm in seeing Kenyon at the top of the list, is there?</p>

10

<p>To be completely honest, I didn't even know Knenyon was rated so high. I was shocked after I was accepted and started doing some research. Talk about not know what it's your own backyard!!</p>

<p>Rank has no influence over me at all.</p>

11

<p>I would expect what Kenyon does about the death to be more significant than the death itself in terms of rankings. Not to belittle this tragedy but college years are tumultuous and things like this happen. I believe something similar has happened at Haverford this year. Several years ago my S's school had several suicides. It is important that the school acknowledge the problem and move to improve the situation. I know my S's school expanded the mental health program. I am actually more comfortable now with the issue of drinking at Kenyon because I believe the school will be very conscious of the issue and work hard to educate the freshman class to risks. I hope they work to give students more options to entertain themselves as well.</p>

12

<p>Kenyon is definitely looking to improve the drinking culture on campus... even if this death does bring ratings down, I'm sure they will bounce back up in no time.</p>

<p>Unfortunately deaths on college campuses are more widely spread than many people think. There was a drinking related death at Haverford not long after Colin's death. Some deaths are publicized and others are not. Last year a Kenyon sophomore commited suicide at home over winter break, but no one outside of Kenyon picked up on that...</p>

<p>I'm not sure deaths really have a huge pull on rankings... MIT has one of the highest suicide rates and look how well they're doing!</p>

13

<p>Nice posts there SRMom3 (liked the viewpoint about Kenyon being more conscious of it's drinking culture from now onwards than what it was before..I really hadn't seen it from this angle)</p>

<p>It certainly is a good news to hear that Kenyon is looking to improve the drinking culture at Campus. Kc_lady..lol, a good one about MIT!</p>

14

<p>click</a> here
click</a> here too</p>

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15

<p>I thought I'd share this allstu with y'all... Saturday is Summer Sendoff, a big spring fiesta, notorious for the copious amounts of alcohol students consume...</p>

<p>To The Kenyon Community,
There will be a Rally this Friday,April 29th @5pm on the Steps of Rosse Hall.
President Nugent will be present, as well as some other student speakers. They will address the social culture of the Kenyon Campus. This will serve as a visual engagement of the community to convey the idea that we, as a community, are united in our compassion and respect for one another and our culture.
There will also be an opportunity to pledge this Saturday, the day of Summer
Send off. The pledge suggested will be the following: </p>

<ol>
<li><p>Students, should they choose to, will wear a purple ribbon on the day that
summer send off will be. By wearing this ribbon, they are showing that they
are pledging to be respectful and responsible for their body, mind, and for
their fellow students and friends. This also signifies an awareness of
individual choice, compassion and action, with an acknowledgment that with the
choice to partake in the events of that day, comes a duty of responsibility
and respect for one another. </p></li>
<li><p>That as a community, we are ready for a change in our social culture, and
we are ready to converse with those that are in a place to make decisions and
changes to our community. </p></li>
</ol>

<p>This is not an issue that is conservative or liberal in its nature, it is a
HUMAN issue. This is an opportunity as a campus to be united, and empathetic
in our actions and for our future. More information about the pledge, as well
as a distribution of ribbons will take place at this event. Your presence will
greatly be appreciated.</p>

16

<p>I missed all of this- did a student die from excessive alcohol intake or DUI?</p>

17

<p>Sorry- ok found the story elsewhere.very sad.</p>