Council to review Delta House plea

Author: Annabelle Fowler

During its first meeting of the year on Sept. 24, the Community Council pledged to discuss a number of issues affecting campus life. Initiatives to be considered in upcoming weeks include reinstating Delta House, reviewing the College's sexual harassment policy and approving the proposal for Sigma Moo.

Two years ago, Delta social house was suspended for a yearlong period and is awaiting re-approval of its residential status. After a chain of events that started with multiple violations of school policy and two cases of sexual assault linked to a 2006 party, Delta was evicted from Prescott House. Now, the Community Council is preparing to discuss Delta's petition for reinstatement and the conditions, if any, that this decision would imply.

In addition, the proposal for Sigma Moo, a new social house, is awaiting approval this year. Community Council will also discuss the situation involving both social houses and recommend potential courses of action to President of the College Ronald D. Liebowitz.

The College's sexual harassment policy will also be discussed in upcoming meetings. Community Council members are hesitant to define or suggest the idea of a social honor code, yet the issue behind a sexual assault policy, which would be intrinsically intertwined with such a code, remains an important and prominent matter for all members of the College community.

The Community Council represents the diverse spectrum of Middlebury students, faculty and staff. Tim Spears, dean of the College and co-chair of the Community Council, introduced the Council as the only place on campus where people come together in one body to talk about things of mutual interest.

"All constituents [of the College community] are represented," he said. This makes the Community Council a place where many different viewpoints will come together, and this makes their recommendations more applicable to the community as a whole.

Student Co-Chair of Community Council Eric Hoest '07.5 was optimistic about the role of this year's Council.

"I'm very happy about the range of the topics we cover," he said. "They are important for students and important for the community."

After discussions regarding Delta House, the College's sexual harassment policy and the proposal for Sigma Moo, other issues that will be considered include a revision of orientation programs on campus, socioeconomic diversity issues, reduction of the College's carbon footprint and the institution of gender-neutral bathrooms.