Second Prefect Affair Revealed

Following a second prefect's violation of a rule prohibiting upperclass prefects from becoming romantically involved with their freshman advisees, student leaders are calling for improved prefect training, but administrators say the program is still on track.

The prefect, a junior, resigned from his post last week after consultation with the Freshman Dean's Office (FDO), which runs the program with the Undergraduate Council, council officials said.

Word of the prefect's resignation came less than a week after another male prefect was reassigned because he was dating one of his assignees.

"It's now two major foul-ups," said council Chairman Brian C. Offutt '87. Despite the foul-up Offutt said, the prefect program should not be cancelled or radically changed.

The prefect program, now in its first full year, pairs about 65 upperclass advisors with residents of about 30 of the Yard's 60 proctorial units.

The affairs between prefects and advisees, which were strongly discouraged, have prompted some students to question the adequacy of the prefects' training.

The two incidents probably will be discussed at a Monday meeting of the prefect steering committee, Offutt said. The committee, which includes students and administrators, will likely call for changes in prefect training, Offutt said.

The program's guidelines call for prefects who begin dating their advisees to resign. Council officers said the prefect who was reassigned for violating the rule was not asked to resign because he was not present when the rule was discussed at the principal prefect training session.

The training session took place at 7:30 a.m. the first day of Freshman Week this September.

"We have been quite clear that you can't be a prefect and get involved with the people you're dealing with," said Mack I. Davis II, assistant dean of the College for advising and counseling and a member of the committee which oversees the prefects.

"I'm not about to say we should start having training programs to teach people common sense," Davis said.

However, several prefects interviewed said that the training they had received hadn't prepared them to deal with emotional attachments and hadn't made clear the channels for dealing with difficult problems--problems which could become acute when the attention is unwanted.

The prefects also said that freshmen were not told that it would be inappropriate for them to become romantically involved with their prefects.

"We certainly weren't cautioned about this," said a freshman in the unit whose proctor resigned. "Upperclassmen going out with freshmen doesn't seem to bother anyone," the freshman said, but prefects must adhere to a stricter code of conduct.

Administrators said the prefect program reamains healthy despite the two recent incidents.

"I think the program is strong and good at the moment, and it has the potential to get stronger and beter," said Dean of Freshmen Henry C. Moses, who oversees the program's day to day operation.

"I think the program is too good to cancel, but we're still learning and experiences like this will help us improve the training program," said Timothy A. Welsh '88, a student representative to the Faculty Standing Committee on Advising and Counseling.