Why "Wet Zones" Should be an Option.

In order to form a middle ground in the argument, we are proposing that campuses provide supervised “wet zones” for ages 18 and above. These zones could possibly take the form of a campus bar or a club that is sponsored, staffed, and monitored by the college it would reside in. These areas could then allow students to buy cheap alcohol while still getting a party feel and being safe. They could even potentially be self sufficient with that exact income it produces or may also provide as a source of income for the University supporting it. These “wet zones” would however have strict rules to provide student safety.

These guidelines would include:

• Commuters must give their keys and show proof of having a designated driver.
• Cuttoff limits on how much alcohol can be bought.
• Escorts back to a student's room by a supervisor with only the people the student arrived with.

 We believe that these policies will help reduce alcohol related accidents and that having a wetzone would remove the taboo of drinking on campus, which will hopefully prevent students from going to bars or parties in order to gain access to alcohol.

Dry Campus Vs. Wet Campuses

    Students drinking on college campuses has been a cultural normality for generations. In order to combat this, many campuses have a “dry campus” policy that doesn’t even allow students that are of legal age to drink to have alcohol on campus. But do these policies really stop college students from doing it? The answer is no and because of this, most colleges have removed the ban for those of legal drinking age, but that still doesn’t get rid of the problem that no matter what, underage students are going to drink. Younger students have older friends that supply alcoholic beverages to them. This enables binge drinking within the underage community. Many parents have problems with their children going to colleges with “wet” campuses due to worries of drunk driving, fighting, sexual assault, and alcohol poisoning.

Most of these concerns are valid, proven by the statistics taken by Wechsler, Henry, and Toben F. Nelson in the study, “What We Have Learned From the Harvard School of Public Health College Alcohol Study: Focusing Attention on College Student Alcohol Consumption and the Environmental Conditions That Promote It.” saying that with each alcoholic drink consumed, the chances of injury increase drastically (Wechsler and Nelson 2006). Universities that are promoting a dry campus have the intentions of reducing these injuries and removing the problems that involve alcohol consumption. While wet campuses feel that they should allow students to do as they please if they are of legal age because, well, they are adults. Making that decision is something that comes along with the responsibilities of being an adult.
But, what if we could come up with a compromise that allows both sides of the argument to be satisfied? We are proposing that campuses provide “wet zones” among college campuses for ages 18 & up. You can review our proposal here.