Spring Break
Administrators defend trayless dining at Straight fom the Source event
Grace Harper
Issue date: 9/3/08 Section: News
Elkins responded with statistics and other evidence to showcase the maturity of a 21-year-old versus an 18-year-old.
An 18-year-old's brain is "still growing… all kinds of things are changing," said Julie Elkins, assistant to Saddlemire. A 21-year-old student's brain, on the other hand, is much more developed. Because of this, there are many safety issues universities are concerned with when faced with the ideas behind the Amethyst Initiative, particularly in respect to the issue of drunk driving and its prevalence with 18-year-olds.
Saddlemire also commented on the importance of the conversation, but also said that UConn has not yet taken an official stance on the matter.
"We do not feel comfortable signing on to the Amethyst Initiative," Saddlemire said. In respect to what UConn itself is doing to prevent underage drinking, he made it clear the university takes the issue very seriously.
"We're [giving] as good an effort as any institution in the country," Saddlemire said. "[Underage drinking] still remains the number-one issue on campus… we're very open to suggestions."
In addition to these main concerns, Mary Lorenz, a 5th-semester political science and sociology double major and Multicultural and Diversity Senator in USG, spoke up about issues pertaining to off-campus housing. Lorenz brought up such issues as the lack of bus transportation available to commuters, which then branched off into other off campus housing issues.
Among these is UConn students' lack of knowledge when it comes to leases, making them vulnerable to landlords. Saddlemire assured the group that students have rights and that the university is looking into a legal counselor for students to assist with such matters.
Other topics that were brought up pertained to housing lottery, which will only get more competitive, as well as the sexual health budget being cut. All concerns student's raised were treated with equal respect.
Before the meeting, Dean of Students Lee Williams spoke about the importance of every issue.
"Students have issues and they're big for them," Williams said. She also spoke of how it's likely the issue could affect more than just the one person asking the question. Therefore by helping one student, you could possibly affect 50 others.
Straight from the Source, presented by USG, will meet monthly. The next session will take place Oct. 7 in room 331 of the Student Union.
An 18-year-old's brain is "still growing… all kinds of things are changing," said Julie Elkins, assistant to Saddlemire. A 21-year-old student's brain, on the other hand, is much more developed. Because of this, there are many safety issues universities are concerned with when faced with the ideas behind the Amethyst Initiative, particularly in respect to the issue of drunk driving and its prevalence with 18-year-olds.
Saddlemire also commented on the importance of the conversation, but also said that UConn has not yet taken an official stance on the matter.
"We do not feel comfortable signing on to the Amethyst Initiative," Saddlemire said. In respect to what UConn itself is doing to prevent underage drinking, he made it clear the university takes the issue very seriously.
"We're [giving] as good an effort as any institution in the country," Saddlemire said. "[Underage drinking] still remains the number-one issue on campus… we're very open to suggestions."
In addition to these main concerns, Mary Lorenz, a 5th-semester political science and sociology double major and Multicultural and Diversity Senator in USG, spoke up about issues pertaining to off-campus housing. Lorenz brought up such issues as the lack of bus transportation available to commuters, which then branched off into other off campus housing issues.
Among these is UConn students' lack of knowledge when it comes to leases, making them vulnerable to landlords. Saddlemire assured the group that students have rights and that the university is looking into a legal counselor for students to assist with such matters.
Other topics that were brought up pertained to housing lottery, which will only get more competitive, as well as the sexual health budget being cut. All concerns student's raised were treated with equal respect.
Before the meeting, Dean of Students Lee Williams spoke about the importance of every issue.
"Students have issues and they're big for them," Williams said. She also spoke of how it's likely the issue could affect more than just the one person asking the question. Therefore by helping one student, you could possibly affect 50 others.
Straight from the Source, presented by USG, will meet monthly. The next session will take place Oct. 7 in room 331 of the Student Union.
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Orlando
posted 9/05/08 @ 8:00 AM EST
These people are truly clueless. UConn is known for making bad decisions and then being afraid to admit it was a bad decision for fears of making them look bad. (Continued…)
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