<p>Altbreak has NOTHING to do with being subfree or not, it’s a service trip. Altbreak trips are officially subfree, so is Bob’s and so are subfree dorms. The keyword being officially. Also I doubt there is any whole organization that does not drink, their events might be, but not the organization is not. The key word being officially.
But yeah, there are plenty of folks on Campus who don’t drink, like I said.</p>
<p>Alt break and renew are not sub free experiences. D has done both and there was quite a bit drinking after putting in a day’s work helping others, underpinning trailers, pounding in sheetrock, etc. Interestingly enough, even when boarding in churches during these break experiences, some of the Grinnell participants drank in the church housing! I think the church staff looked the other way. The drinking was not confined to Grinnell. There were students from several other colleges at one of the renew breaks she did. Those students drank as well.</p>
<p>glad to see im not the only 2015-er who’s not into drinking and partying…we should all keep in touch and form our own activities in case such opportunities are scarce</p>
<p>I saw on the housing site that those wanting sub-free housing go first in the room draw for returning students (ie., not incoming freshman). There are three sub-free dorms, and as zeledonb said, it appears that floors in other dorms may be designated sub-free, as perhaps the sub-free dorms are filled before freshmen are factored in or there are more students than alloted dorms (perhaps Grinnell saves some slots in the sub-free dorms for freshmen; I don’t know, but someone could ask the school if they’re interested).</p>
<p>Residential Life person said there are now four sub-free dorms, but upperclassmen draw first. Then sub-free freshmen are clustered together in sub-free wings. When they have a critical mass of another 50 students who want sub-free, over and above the four-dorms-worth who currently indicate sub-free dorms, then they will create another sub-free dorm. Students should “truly want” sub-free, and not be indicating it at parents’ insistence, which I suppose is why upperclassmen have priority.</p>
<p>Upperclassmen definitely DO NOT HAVE PRIORITY ABOVE FRESHMEN FOR SUB-FREE HOUSING. I know for sure because I just looked at the room draw charts for sub free, and about HALF the sub-free rooms are ALREADY marked off for freshmen. A lot of students who want sub free, both new and returning, are not going to get it: that’s just the way it goes. There are plenty of floors where parties happen rarely to never, and often that is where students who didn’t get sub free go. Even if there are parties, locking the door and hiding in your room, or going to the JRC, is perfectly normal, judgement-free, and pressureless.</p>
<p>to all incoming first-years: be very honest about your lifestyle on the questionnaire! Help Grinnell help you by placing you with a comfortable living situation. I recall that it had quite a lot of details to fill in about how social you are, types of music, living habits (how late you stay up) etc.</p>
<p>I filled the questionnaire out today, but I wasn’t picky. Only thing I really asked for was a roommate that didn’t smoke. Everything else was pretty standard all the way down the line. Co-ed hall, yes to internationals, yes to guests, don’t care if he’s sloppy or neat, etc.</p>
<p>The sleeping habits are maybe the most important. My son was matched with another night owl and it worked out very well.</p>
<p>S is a sophomore and got into a sub-free housing for his first year. His floor was all freshmen. As a freshmen S was paired with a really nice guy but their sleeping habits were quite different. His rommate had better habits. They never had any problem because S used to study in the lounge or Library but he paid some price for it so I totally agree with bethievt that sleeping habits are crucial. So be very candid on your housing questionary, don’t say what you wish to be but what you really are. For his second year he chose to move to another dorm this time based on its facilities such as A/C, laundry, PC printing lab and he is much happier now. I guess I like sub-free dorms more than him but he’s still a sub-free guy!</p>
<p>S went (alone) to Admitted Days last weekend. Came back “in major doubt”. Academics are absolutely beyond question. But major partying was going on in the dorm, including smoking, on a Thursday night. Last night I read all reviews on C<strong>P</strong> and it seems like the consensus is “like Pitzer” but tougher academics. </p>
<p>What’s going on? I thought students were up to the challenge. I know there are partiers at every school, but is it that they are the most vocal in reviews? I suppose 40% partiers means 60% not partiers, but I just can’t seem to get a handle on the real situation there. Is it a maturity thing? It seems, from a distance, that the school spends plenty of money on things to do. Maybe the new administration is changing things? If more students want sub-free, why not just set aside another dorm? The weather is a challenge, but it’s the same story at half the colleges in the country at least. Could someone PLEASE enlighten us as to the “real story” of the students at Grinnell.</p>
<p>I don’t think there is “one” story. Alot of kids will party, and alot will not. He obviously did not do his overnight in a sub-free dorm or floor. My son did not party in HS, but I know he does now at college. Fact of life. What I do think, though, is that he does not party just for the sake of getting wasted, but as something he likes to do while hanging out with his friends. I have no idea if he’s drinking on a Thursday night or not. I"m sure there are kids at Grinnell whose idea of a good time is to get as wasted as they possibly can. Just as I"m sure there are kids who have zero interest in substance use. </p>
<p>IMO, the key to the Grinnell culture is its acceptance of people as they are. So, if a kid wants to party, he / she does; if they don’t, they find their own comfort level in being in a room where people are partying or they find other people to hang out with. </p>
<p>All I can say is, I know that my son loves to have engaging classes and interesting discussions with people, and he feels very comfortable at Grinnell. He is not one who would hide his intelligence to be cool (he has never ever cared about peer pressure in any way) and seems to have made alot of friends.</p>
<p>It is difficult to know for sure from an overnight on any campus, and I"m sorry this happened to your son. I know when my son went in high school for his visit, he stood outside a party his host went to, and spent the night talking to people there. He didn’t feel comfortable joining the party (this was a Friday night), but he felt totally reassured by the conversations he had with students that this was the place for him.</p>
<p>My son requested sub-free and was instead grouped on a floor with other over-flow requesters, which seems pretty similar to me and worked very well for him. It was a mixed-year floor, which also worked well. My son does go to parties and enjoys them. I don’t get the feeling that there is any more partying going on at Grinnell than at other LACs and probably way less than some of the big Us with Greek life and big sports.</p>
<p>Did he not encounter partying at Pitzer? My son certainly did on his visit to Pomona.</p>
<p>1bie, did your son go out and look around the campus to see if the partying was going on everywhere? I’d be shocked if it was a campus-wide night of debauchery! I would imagine that if he went in the library (or other quiet spaces students use to study; I know my S uses other locations sometimes), he would have seen students hard at work. </p>
<p>I have to believe that at any school in America, on any given night, students will be doing some substance use. It could also be that the particular dorm your S stayed in happens to be a bit more of a “party dorm” by virtue of the particular students who are in it this year than if he had overnighted in another location. </p>
<p>I also have to add that all three of my kids didn’t drink or otherwise “party” in high school, but that all three of them drink in college. Each of my kids is independent-minded and not prone to peer pressure, so I guess they just decided they wanted to try it. I"m not saying that this will happen to everyone, but sometimes what kids decide to do once they get to college might surprise their parents – and the kids themselves. Two of my kids proudly called themselves “straight edge” in high school…All I can say is that I’m really glad they postponed the drinking until they were old enough to consider handling it a little more responsibly. (and no, I don’t think they started drinking because they felt released from parental pressure or suddenly accustomed to new freedom; my D told me that she really liked how she felt that I trusted her as an adolescent growing up in our household…). </p>
<p>I’m just saying that what might feel scary or wild to your S now, might be different once he’s in the environment.</p>
<p>perhaps your S should try to talk to more students on the campus now, too, to learn more about the party scene. [Meet</a> Us - Admission | Grinnell College](<a href=“http://www.grinnell.edu/admission/meetus]Meet”>http://www.grinnell.edu/admission/meetus)</p>
<p>just to be sure you noticed the direct info about student emails:
<a href=“http://www.grinnell.edu/admission/voices/students[/url]”>http://www.grinnell.edu/admission/voices/students</a></p>
<p>I know these are students picked by the college to represent them, but I’d have to believe they’d be honest. Everything I’ve seen about Grinnellians tells me that they speak their minds! Plus, right on this site, the school asked them to name their “worst thing about Grinnell,” so they’re trying to give a clear picture… It’s a small campus, so fit is important. That’s another reason I believe they’d try to be honest!</p>
<p>There are people who party on wednesday and thursday nights. south campus always smells like pot, and you can always find people smoking. but most of the campus only parties on friday and saturday. if you get a bad dorm (and there are some) where people party every night, your best bet is to go somewhere else at night. this is the way it is at all colleges, but a grinnell, i really do think the proportion is lower.</p>