LAUSDeanLong: Since our last online Dialogue on Drinking post, I attended a Dialogue on Drinking event facilitated by the World In Conversation Project, which brought students, faculty and administrators together to have a candid discussion about drinking. The details of the discussion are confidential, but I learned a lot during the 90-minute session. It has prompted me to think a lot about questions of freedom and responsibility.

My sense is that students often frame their decisions in terms of personal freedom rather than communal responsibility. This statement, which I admit is already a massive generalization, probably applies to Americans in general, and not just students. But I am thinking right now about students as they make decisions regarding drinking. I have heard many students say something like: if I want to drink to excess, that is my business and the University or the Borough or the police should not involve themselves in what is an issue of personal freedom. Is this a fair characterization of how many, not all, students frame the issue of drinking?

Geoff Halberstadt: I think the background for your question is pretty indicative of how many students feel; however, we both know that students’ reasons for drinking vary greatly: work hard…party hard, trying something new, personal stresses, and personal freedom to name just a few. But let’s focus on your question: yes – this is a fair characterization of how some students frame this issue. The majority of students understand that there is a balance between personal freedom and communal responsibility. I can see this because the vast majority of students never cause problems or put an undue burden on the community because of their behavior. When that line gets blurred, we see the massive problems that dangerous drinking can cause. If we assume that students see this problem through the lens of personal freedom, how do we address this conflict between personal freedom and the personal responsibility one should feel toward one’s community?

LAUSDeanLong: Perhaps we should ask: what responsibilities do you–student, staff, faculty, Borough resident–feel toward the community in which you live? Notice, of course, that in asking this, I have identified different groups of people each of which will likely have commitments to different kinds of communities. So, in asking this, let’s limit it to the Penn State University Park community as situated in the Borough of State College. What does it mean to be a member of this Penn State community and what do we owe one another as members of it?

Geoff Halberstadt: I believe we, as students, owe other members (specifically, non-students) of the community two basic things. First we owe them respect as residents, members, and contributors to the same community to which we belong. Secondly, we owe them understanding. What do I mean by that? I believe we owe the other members of the community an understanding of where they come from. This includes understanding why a young family is appalled when students throw beer cans through their windows. Or why a mother is furious when a drunk student breaks into a home in which her children are asleep. Or why a property owner doesn’t want garbage tossed in their garden. A basic understanding of other people’s positions or situations can lead to mutual respect. A certain amount of respect goes a long way in combating problems that would otherwise arise when students aren’t thoughtful of the community in which we live.

Visit the “Dialogue on Drinking” category of our blog to follow the conversation between Dean Long and Geoff Halberstadt from the beginning.