Members of the Alcohol Task Force are moving closer to recommending a policy to prohibit students from carrying alcohol onto the President's Lawn during next semester's Spring Fling, according to members of the task force.
Task force discussions have occurred behind closed doors, a practice the group agreed upon by consensus in an effort to encourage honest conversation and prevent false rumors about the task force's plans from spreading, according to Director of Health Education Ian Wong, chair of the task force.
The task force, comprised of students, administrators and staff, is comprehensively examining current alcohol policy. One of the group's three subcommittees focuses on how to manage major on-campus events like Spring Fling. The task force aims to offer recommendations to a policy-setting steering committee on alcohol policy by winter break.
The task force plans on publicizing information as soon as it has a draft proposal, which could be as soon as today, according to Wong. Following its release, the proposal will be made public for student input, Wong said.
"We'll go back and we'll try to seek an open conversation with the complete student body," he said.
Several task force members told the Daily that the body was considering a proposal to ban alcohol from being carried into the grounds of Spring Fling. The members requested anonymity because they were not authorized to speak on the record about task force discussions.
In past years, official policy has permitted of-age students to bring a limited quantity of alcoholic beverages onto the event grounds. But last year's celebration was marked by an unusually large number of students seeking medical attention for alcohol-related issues, causing a mass-casualty incident when the number of students needing medical attention exceeded the capacity of health personnel on hand.
In an attempt to prevent dangerous levels of alcohol consumption among students, task force members have suggested creating a pub section for of-age students on the President's Lawn, in a setup similar to that of the annual Winter Bash dance, according to task force members.
While a number of the members told the Daily that various proposals remain under consideration, some said that this approach is gaining momentum. One member said the proposal "has seemed almost inevitable from the very beginning" of the task force's deliberations.
Several other members who were contacted declined to comment on the record regarding the matter, citing confidentiality concerns.
Since the group's formation earlier in the semester, the discussions and meetings of the body have been closed to the public. Minutes are kept private and members are discouraged from speaking publicly about task force proceedings.
Most task force members interviewed for this article defended the group's confidential nature as important to creating an honest discussion. They said it was not a concerted effort to withhold information.
"It's not that we don't want information to get out," Wong said. "It's just; how can we have a very tough discussion about a very tough issue in an open and honest way?"
Tufts Community Union (TCU) President Brandon Rattiner, a senior and the only person on both the task force and the steering committee, agreed.
"I think it's critical to its effectiveness," he said of the task force's closed-door policy. He added that if task force members did not have the guarantee of confidentiality, they would be unable to amend positions they had previously taken. "Nothing would be discussed in honesty," Rattiner said.
But others took issue with some aspects of the body's lack of transparency.
"It seems very odd that they wouldn't publicize it more and get student opinions, since ultimately they're the ones affected by the policy," senior Tom Bennet said.
Task force member Kevin Wong, who has no relation to Ian Wong, said that the secretive nature of the body has limited students' access to information. He distinguished between publicizing the information up for discussion and attributing that information to individuals.
"I think it would be helpful for people to know what issues and strategies we are discussing," said Kevin Wong, a senior. "I understand that attributing suggestions to specific people might cause restraint during discourse, but publicizing the content could prove very enlightening."
Dean of Student Affairs Bruce Reitman said the number of students on the task force — 16 of its 24 members are students — and the many demographics they represent have made the group successful in garnering a variety of ideas and feedback.
"The reason why there are so many students on the task force and it was structured that way … was to have a broad student opinion and perspective," Reitman said. "It's probably the most effective way to get the student input and, from what I understand, it's an active and lively conversation."
Reitman is not a member of the task force, but he sits on the steering committee.
He emphasized that while students might not be aware of the task force recommendations now, they will learn about its work eventually.
TCU Senator Bruce Ratain is a member of the task force and the chair of the Senate's Administration and Policy Committee, which authored the resolution on alcohol policy that the Senate passed on Sunday. He said that the goal of preventing rumors through confidentiality was logical.
"There are a lot of very legitimate issues being discussed, so to have misinformation out there is dangerous," said Ratain, a junior.
The tendency toward privacy caused confusion last month, when Kevin Wong sent an e-mail to hundreds of undergraduates suggesting that the task force was considering canceling Spring Fling outright or banning alcohol at the event.
Task force members were quick to deny these allegations, but at the time did not counter them with details of the body's discussions.
Rattiner noted that students do not need access to task force discussions to stay engaged in the debate, citing the "town meeting" to be hosted by Dean of Arts and Sciences Robert Sternberg tonight as one avenue of involvement.
The town meeting, entitled "Changing the Alcohol Culture at Tufts," will take place from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. in the Remis Sculpture Court. The event is open to the Tufts community.
Reitman sent an e-mail last week urging task force and steering committee members to attend. He told the Daily yesterday that the forum could be seen as an "open meeting" of the task force and steering committee.
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Giovanni Russonello contributed reporting to this article.
