Alcohol-free/quiet floors aren't always either, no matter how hard the RA's try

by Marilyn King

Ooops - is that a Molson's? The trash tells the story

It’s midnight and you’ve finally drifted off to sleep. Suddenly, from outside your door you hear loud-talking and laughing. Annoyed, you climb down from your loft and open the door. Not only are there a bunch of people talking in the hallway, but from across the hall you can see into your neighbor’s dorm and there are beer bottles strewn across the floor.

And this is supposed to be a quiet, alcohol-free floor. What gives?

Many dorms have designated quiet and alcohol-free floors, but just how often are these rules actually followed? Standards differ in each dorm.

Alex Tassopoulos, a third year student, is a Resident Assistant (RA) for the  second year and has dealt with students breaking quiet/alcohol-free housing policies last year as well as this year. “I’ve already had to write people up this year,” Tassopoulus said. “It was for alcohol. [The students] were in plain sight and were being very obvious about it.” Alex has to be relatively strict when it comes to getting students in trouble when they break these rules. “You have to always follow regulation. You can’t let some students go and then bust others for it –
it will cause conflict,” he said.

Do students with alcohol get a warning first? Sorry, but no. “You have to adhere to policy,” Tassopoulos said. “I had to deal with people breaking policy last year, so I’m used to it by now.” Alex explained that if he doesn’t do something about it when he sees students acting up, he could be the one in trouble. “If my superiors find out, I could get fired,” Tassopoulus said.

Although RA’s try to make sure students follow the alcohol-free rules, many students find ways around the rules. Hiding beer cans makes sense.  To get rid of the smell of marijuana or cigarette smokes, students stuff towels in the door and use an air-circulating fan in the window.  Air freshener can help, too.
 
Some students wonder how true it is that the police will come to your door if you are caught with marijuana or for underage drinking. “My friend’s roommate told me a story about that,” freshman Dave Jakewenko said. “She was saying that if the cops come to your dorm, just don’t let them in and they can’t do anything.” However, Tassopoulos explains that the student will still get in trouble whether or not they answer the door for the police. “We have to document the situation regardless, so they are already aware of what’s going on,” Tassopoulos said.

What about the issue of people being loud on a quiet floor?

Some students believe that “quiet housing” is a practical impossibility. “It’s just a formality for people who say they want to have a quiet floor,” sophomore Greg Beckett said. “It’s mostly freshman who don’t know any better and don’t realize the floor won’t actually be quiet. I was on a quiet floor last year and it was even louder than the one I’m on now – and it was an honors floor.”

Some students don’t have a problem with quiet floors that aren’t truly silent. “I respect the people who want a quiet floor,” freshman Michael Lamach said. “But a lot of quiet floors aren’t actually quiet.”

“I’d rather have a floor that is close than a very quiet floor,” Tassopoulos said. “Especially in these first few months of school, I give everyone a bit more leeway to let them socialize and get to know each other. I can let a couple of things go, like talking in the hallway. It’s when there’s thumping bass late at night that I need to say something about it.”

Students don’t always adhere to the alcohol-free/quiet-housing rules, but as long as students are responsible with their choices, they are less likely to get into trouble for it.