<p>Hey guys, Is it not rather sad that a school of UVA class is most known for its drinking binges?? The dean needs to take some firm steps particularly in the light of current incidents.</p>
<p>Are you under the impression that UVa has been complacent in this? I assure you that it has not been. I see a great deal of proactive marketing and programming here.</p>
<p>Sounds reassuring, yet unfortunately reputations often precede rankings and its certain that no other school is as associated with drinking, although I am sure it exists everywhere nonetheless. I hope UVA shall be able to throw off this monster soon and take hold of its glory.</p>
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Yes.
Incorrect. There are lists of top parties schools made every year and UVa is never on them.</p>
<p>[Party</a> school - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia](<a href=“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Party_school]Party”>Party school - Wikipedia)</p>
<p>^Those are the top party schools though. You don’t need to be a top party school to have an insane party scene.</p>
<p>Simply a side-comment, no connection to UVa or anything else.</p>
<p>The statement was “no other college is as associated with drinking” and that is incorrect.</p>
<p>I hate to say it Dean J, but UVa does not do nearly enough to combat drinking. I remember my first night on campus, walking past a cop with an open beer in my hand. He told me to walk on the side walk.
When it takes less than a day to locate the party scene and get drunk, that’s a pretty major drinking problem.
If I were, say, walking past with a joint in my hand, things would have gone very differently.</p>
<p>@ssnakeggirl isn’t it like that on a majority of campuses? By that I mean relaxed cops and parties almost everyday of the week.</p>
<p>ssnakeggirl, UVa is not responsible for your decision to drink on day one of your career here. You sought out alcohol. That seems like a comment on your background. I would consider yourself very lucky that you encountered such a lenient police officer.</p>
<p>College students choose to drink. Colleges have programs to raise awareness about drinking, alcohol abuse, and related issues. UVa was the founding school of the National Social Norming Institute (a major force in alcohol education). UVa is not complacent in this matter.</p>
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<p>Honestly, UVA handles drinking about as well as any school can. Bottom line is, lots college students are going to seek out alcohol, at whatever cost. Cracking down super-hard on drinking (like, say, BYU) would be costly, difficult, and might even make the school less attractive to a lot of students (there’s already one elite school with the reputation “where fun goes to die” in UChicago, and that seems to be enough to satisfy the market demand).</p>
<p>Instead, UVA has rightly chosen to fight the important battles that are easier to win-- informing and protecting students from the dangers of binge drinking, rather than going after drinking outright. And keeping alcohol out of first-year dorms. </p>
<p>The perceived “lax” attitude of the cops might just be part of the Jeffersonian tradition of young men [and women] learning on their own, from their own mistakes, and making their own decisions. It’s the same attitude that explains why UVA only placed pathways where it saw students trampling the grass down, rather than dictating where the students may walk beforehand.</p>
<p>Another great thing UVA and Charlottesville does to discourage binge drinking is making available plenty of activities where alcohol is not as big a factor. Cheap movies in Newcomb, downtown for crepes at the flat and a concert at the Jefferson-- some of my favorite things to do on the weekend. A lot of the biggest drinking schools-- Colgate, Dartmouth, etc. are that way because they’re in the middle of nowhere.</p>
<p>Does UVA offer any alcohol/drug free dorms for students who are not interested in the party scene and do not want to have to babysit drunk roommates?</p>
<p>I went to UVa many years ago, but here’s some thoughts:</p>
<p>Unlike at many colleges, the UVa cops and RAs were not out to “catch” students. They were mainly concerned about keeping students safe, and they did a very good job at that. The students were not afraid of the University cops or RAs. </p>
<p>In comparison, I knew a RA at Penn State at the time who said she had difficulty bonding with freshman students because she was ordered to report any underaged drinking immediately. There was no level of trust - the RA became the person to hide from. </p>
<p>If an underage student had too much to drink, they or their friends didn’t fear going to a RA or a University cop for help. The University cops were primarily concerned about avoiding pedestrian-vehicle accidents.</p>
<p>UVA is completely complacent in this matter, and completely irresponsible. How many students have to die, or suffer serious injury, before this changes? Face it, Dean J, UVA has a culture of drunkedness – just read the Law Weekly (which school’s students annually host the Feb Club, a month of daily parties) or search on youtube for “Foxfield Races.” Or better yet, drive down 14th Street any weekend night. Or do as I did, and walk your second grader up 14th Street to school at Venable on Friday morning, and step over broken bottles, trash, and vomit. I am a double Hoo, and I find UVA’s position that it’s not their responsibility as long as students are off campus DISGUSTING.</p>