College Plans New Alcohol Policy

The alcohol policy committee expects to submit a draft of a comprehensive new Harvard alcohol policy by the end of the school year, according to committee head Rakesh Khurana.

Khurana said the committee is currently in the “listening and understanding period” of the review process and said that, as a result, he could not yet predict the extent to which the revised policy will deviate from the College’s current rules regarding alcohol.

“We’re pretty early on in the process,” said Khurana, who is also a Cabot House Master. “Right now what we’re trying to do is facilitate conversations and understanding about how we can help support and develop a philosophy around alcohol policy at the College.”

Once completed, the draft of the new alcohol policy will be sent to Dean of the College Evelynn M. Hammonds for final approval.

Over the coming year, the Office of Student Life will hold conversations with Harvard students in an effort to generate student feedback on Harvard’s drinking culture.

Administrators said they will convey comments to members of committee.

Ari L. Rubin ’13, who attended the first such meeting, held last month among students from Kirkland, Eliot, and Winthrop Houses, said that he was encouraged by “the willingness of the administration to listen to what we as students have to say.”

“The conversations are important because we as students are the ones being impacted by the decisions,” said Nicholas L. Moore ’13, who also attended the meeting.

Final policy decisions will fall to the members of the alcohol policy committee, which includes Khurana, administrators, and a small number of students.

The committee was formed last spring in conjunction with administrators’ efforts to address unhealthy drinking habits in the undergraduate community.

Over the past three years, admittances to UHS for alcohol-related sickness have been rising, reaching the entire total for the 2009-2010 academic year by the end of the 2010-2011 fall semester, according to tutors who learned the statistics from College administrators during a residential tutor meeting.

Dean of Student Life Suzy M. Nelson said the College is interested in reevaluating the current alcohol policy in the context of creating a healthy social scene while still remaining within the boundaries of the law.

“How do we create and ensure the well-being of our students. ... That is the goal,” Khurana said. “We’re working backwards towards that goal.”

—Staff writer Hana N. Rouse can be reached at hrouse@college.harvard.edu.