As eveyone directly affiliated with LETU knows, Student Senate and various levels of administration are currently considering adding extra hours for open dorms. The current addition being discussed would allow visitation of opposite-sex dorms on Sunday from 5 p.m to 9 p.m.
The Apartments, the living area I represent in Senate, seem not to care that much because any additional hours between noon and 11 p.m. on any day would not affect us. Therefore, I want it to be clear that the following is simply my opinion on the matter and does not reflect the view of the Apartments.
As the rule currently stands, one is allowed to visit the dorm rooms of those of the opposite sex during three six-hour windows at the close of each week. That's eighteen hours spread over three days. I think this is ridiculous.
With a few exceptions, the students at LETU are legally adults. We can drive. We can vote. We could buy cigarettes, and some of us can even buy alcohol. We are old enough to be considered responsible for paying LETU, and many of us do bear the bulk of that financial burden. We can select our own majors, choose our classes (in almost any order), and decide to drop classes or college altogether.
We are given tremendous responsibility to plan our future through our educational and financial choices. Yet, we apparently can not be trusted around the opposite sex unless we are almost continually supervised. I can only assume the reason for this is that those who make the rules believe college age men and women are so full of hormones that they will literally tear off their clothes the moment they aren't being watched.
Oh, wait, that isn't the reason. It's because they are trying to help us students make wise decisions. They are protecting us from ourselves. They don't want us to become distracted if we are trying to do homework, prepare for class, or try to sleep. Apparently, students at LETU aren't capable of asking someone to leave. They don't want us to succumb to temptation. Apparently, students at LETU aren't capable of making moral decisions regarding sexuality unless a multi-layered system of checks are in place.
I am against having "closed dorms" at all. We, as adults, are capable of making responsible decisions. Those who don't make responsible decisions face consequences for their choices. Just like with the internet filter, anyone who wants to get around the "open dorms" rules will do so.
I guess I am just opposed to rules which punish everyone because a few are irresponsible.
Posted by Randy at February 7, 2006 05:55 PM | TrackBack