COLLEGE SHORTS

Author: jason f. Siegel

UVM alcohol rule riles students

Due to a recent change in the alcohol policy, of-age students at the University of Vermont may only possess 24 servings of alcohol at a time, rather than the previous 56, approximately the size of a keg. The rule, known as the "Common Source Policy," also limits servings to 12 in the presence of students under the age of 21.

The change was made in August, and since then, there have been over 200 reported cases of underage drinking, with more than 70 detoxes. However, there has not yet been a single reported case of a violation of the policy, something administration officials attribute to heightened awareness of the negative consequences of such violations.

The policy has met much opposition from students, who claim that the new policy is not nuanced enough. Sarah Poirier, student government association president, decried the lack of attention to proof, noting that having the same number of servings of a higher proof will have different effects on a student's blood alcohol content. The other main fault that students found was that the policy will be enforced off-campus, though since it breaks no laws, Burlington police will not enforce it.



Williams display accused of racism

The relocation of a Herman Rosse painting in the theater and dance facility at Williams College has angered many students who claim the picture is racist and sexist.

A handful of students and three professors support the removal of the painting for a variety of reasons. The principal reason is that some students perceive a depiction of an African man as racist, due to exaggerated facial features, and the portrayal of women as "hypersexualized." They say they would tolerate the non-removal if another painting were placed in the space to counter the singular presence of this work.

Custodian of the Chapin Library Eric Volz countered these claims. He affirmed that the African man, a three-inch figure in the 10-foot painting, was likely treated with dignity, and that the topless women were not sexual in the same way a stripper would be, but rather in the style of classical paintings.

President Mort Schapiro has not committed to any action yet.

New commission for overseas study

Citing a need for increased exposure to global influences, a federal commission of Republicans and Democrats released a report on Monday proposing a huge increase in federal spending to send more university students abroad. The Commission on the Abraham Lincoln Study Abroad Fellowship, curiously named after a man who never left the country, is hoping for hundreds of millions of dollars from the government to send a million students abroad by 2017.

Chairman Peter McPherson, ex-president of Michigan State University, stated, "[Studying abroad] adds a global richness to a campus that just a few students abroad can't achieve."

The commission is looking to especially boost the number of students in Asian and Arab countries, as more than 60 percent of students currently study abroad in Europe.