Residential life office bans alcohol use at rush functions
By Gigi Golden
Staff Writer
The Office of Residential Life issued a directive last week that no alcoholic beverages may be served by fraternities or sororities at rushing functions.
In a memorandum to all fraternity and sorority chapter officers issued on Jan. 3. Hans Reichl, director of Residential Life, stated that no alcohol may be served at "programs conducted during the formal rushing periods for the purpose of new member selection or at any chapter social function held at any other time for the purpose of membership recruitment.”
The directive affects alcohol policy for rush only. All other fraternity or sorority functions continue to be governed by the existing university policy which states that alcohol may be served to those over 21.
“We are not trying to stop drinking, just underage drinking," said Reichl. “We are really here to help the whole Greek system."
Reichl met in small groups with almost all the chapter presidents on Friday to
explain the policy and answer any questions. He said the meetings were fruitful in developing an understanding between the Row and the Office of Residential Life.
The office has been working on the directive for over a month. During that time, the proposal was reviewed by the Student Health Center Alcoholic Education Task Force, the Student Affairs Management and the Greek Coordinating Council.
The change in policy comes just four weeks before spring rush activities.
“We really wanted to get it implemented before spring rush rather than in fall,” Reichl said. “Spring rush is less critical for the houses.”
Mike O'Donnell, president of Phi Delta Theta fraternity, said “I object to the
fact that they gave us such short notice. I think it’s going to hurt us in the short run.”
Until the university changed the overall alcohol policy in 1969. no alcohol was allowed at rush.
Reichl gave a number of reasons for the return to “dry” rushing activities:
•	Not serving alcohol at rushing functions would reduce the overall cost of the parties. Those costs usually run between $75,000 and $95,000 for the Row.
•	The presence of alcohol at rushing parties presents a “one-sided picture of the meaning and reality of fraternity life,” wrote Reichl. Such parties do not, Reichl said, show the true meaning of fraternity experience.
•	Because of new liability laws concerning alcohol, second and third parties are now more responsible for
minors who consume too much alcohol.
•	The presence of alcohol at rush parties attracts persons who are not necessarily interested in pledging a fraternity. That not only involves college students, but Los Angeles area high school students as well, an added liability factor.
•	The large parties with alcohol increase pressure upon houses to hold large social functions, often distorting the purpose of rush.
•	Reichl also wrote that offering alcohol at rush parties is a reinforcement of alcohol, which “can lead to future problems for some individuals.”
•	Finally. Reichl wrote. “The best fraternity experiences throughout the nation make it clear that one of the worst ways to effectively rush a student is in an environment where a loud band is playing, members are rushing’ their own dates, rushees are ‘rushing’ their own date (if they have one) and everyone is getting politely (or not so politely) drunk.”
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Daily f® Trojan
University of Southern California
Volume LXXII, Number 61
Campus use of alcohol, grass said extensive
Los Angeles, California
Tuesday, January 10, 1978
Student groups discuss new calendar proposal
“We had 2 bags of grass, 75 pellets of mescaline, 5 sheets of high-powered blotter acid, a salt shaker half full of cocaine and a whole galaxy of multicolored uppers, downers, screamers, laughers...and also a quart of tequila, a quart of rum, a case of Budweiser, a pint of raw ether and two dozen amyls.”
—Hunter S. Thompson Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas
By Peter Bylsma
It should come as no suprise to most people that in our drug-oriented society, institutions of higher education exhibit the use, misuse and abuse of drugs. USC is no exception.
Larry Ehrmann, safety officer and coordinator for the Student Health Center’s Health Advocate program, commented that “Alcohol and alcoholism on campus is a pandemic, it touches everyone.”
The drug culture involves far more than just the use of alcohol. There are many types of drugs used today and most can be found on campus.
This doesn’t mean that drugs are readily available. As one observer said, “USC isn’t a drug haven; the drugs won’t come to you. You could go four years here without even encountering them if you didn't want to. In many cases, you could try and find nothing but pot, but they're there for the finding, if you really want them.”
The university is no exception from most college campuses and the use of marijuana and alcohol is widespread. Joe Gamsky, editor of The Row Street Journal, said. “Grass is extraordinarily noticeable. I’d say I have contact with a smoker every day. Because it’s a misdemeanor now, people are a lot more open about it. It is very hard to feel marijuana is taboo and alcohol isn’t.” One dormitory resident, referred to as “Watcher of tne Skies,” said “...drugs are so pervasive in the
dorms! I’d be willing to estimate that there is at least one smoker on every floor and at least three who drink alcohol.”
“Drugs aren’t that big of a problem in the dorms . . .If there really were some problems, we’d hear about it,” said Barbara Tracy, area coordinator of the north-south complex for the Office of Residential Life.
“It’s not the big thing that parents worry about; for example, if their kids get in with such-and-such a roommate, they’ll try drugs...but they’re pretty set in their ways. Students here are very conservative,” she said.
“I don’t think that Row residents drink any more than the people in the residence halls . . .there are problems. The emphasis on alcohol is much greater than it should be and is often totally inappropriate with what should be going on,” said Mike Wittern of fraternity affairs.
“Alcohol is one definite problem to single out,” Ehrmann said, “but most drugs aren’t a major concern. As far as grass goes, this is a funny campus. A lot of people smoke dope, but they don’t broadcast it. It’s kept quiet and nobody really admits to it. Usage is not any more than any other school. Perhaps the biggest concern is chronic fat from the munchies.”
★ ★ ★
"They are still burning the taxpayers for thousands of dollars to make films about ‘the dangers of LSD,' at a time when acid is widely known — to everybody but the cops — to be the Studebaker of the drug market. . .The big market these days is in downers. . .uppers are no longer stylish. Methedrine is almost as rare. . .as pure acid or DMT (dimethyltryptamine). 'Consciousness expansion' went out with LBJ. . .aiui it is worth noting, historically, that downers came in with Nixon."—Hunter S. Thompson
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By Jim Saenz
Staff Writer
In an effort to propose a change in the university’s academic calendar to the Board of Trustees, various heads of student groups met Sunday to discuss the ramifications of such a move.
“Our new proposal, if approved, would change the university’s present calendar to two four-month semesters with a three-week vacation in between the two terms,” said Craig Settles, a student senator who chaired the meeting.
Under the new calendar, the fall semester would start a little earlier, like the third week of August, and finish a couple of weeks before Christmas.
“We would then take our regular two week Christmas vacation and have the first week of January be solely for spring registration,” Settles said.
Classes would then start and the spring term would be over by late April or early May, Settles said.
Settles said one of the major arguments against the proposal would be the number of transfer students the university would loose.
“However, in a survey taken by the university’s Institutional Studies Office, it was shown
that the bulk of student transfers would not have been affected by the calendar change."
“In 1975,” Settles said, "48fJ< of the transfer students coming to USC finished their last class prior to entering the university. Half were done in January anyway, and the results of a questionaire that was given to the students, showed that a majority of them would still have come to ’SC even if their classes hadn’t finished.”
In the past Settles said, the proposals for the new calendar have called for a six-week vacation instead of three. “The advantage of the three-week vacation is that this way you can let the students graduate a little early and give them a jump at the job market.”
Finals would be before Christmas vacation and they wouldn’t hang over into the new year. Settles said. "Still another .advantage would be with the three-week vacation, it would eliminate labor problems, such as layoffs, that would occur with a longer break."
"Our only big problem that we can see is that we’ve got to prove the new calendar would not lose the university any money if we make the change," he said.
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First student directory in six years available
After many months of planning, the student directory became available Monday. The directory, which compiles students' names, addresses and phone numbers, was published at a cost of little more than $7,000, according to Clarence Anderson, university publisher.
“Ads covered the cost of it, essentially,” he said. “We are happy a project of this kind broke even. It is quite costly but it is warranted by the service to students and campus community.”
The publication has eight pages of advertising in addition to those on the back cover.
Anderson said he had hoped the directory would be available by December but due to technical problems once the actual production got underway, it took longer than he and his staff had anticipated.
The directory compiles the information students submitted on information cards handed out with their registration packets. Data on all students who registered for the fall semester and who had paid fee bills was used.
Anderson said that 23,000 names were used in the book and because the information used came from cards which may have been filled prior to this semester, some addresses may not be up to date.
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