• Rich Barlow

    Senior Writer

    Photo: Headshot of Rich Barlow, an older white man with dark grey hair and wearing a grey shirt and grey-blue blazer, smiles and poses in front of a dark grey backdrop.

    Rich Barlow is a senior writer at BU Today and Bostonia magazine. Perhaps the only native of Trenton, N.J., who will volunteer his birthplace without police interrogation, he graduated from Dartmouth College, spent 20 years as a small-town newspaper reporter, and is a former Boston Globe religion columnist, book reviewer, and occasional op-ed contributor. Profile

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There are 8 comments on Alcohol Enforcement Patrols Resume

  1. As a private university BU must be able to do more to curb underage alcohol consumption and the concerns that accompanies it. BU may consider tying scholarships and grant renewals to unblemished behavior records , no drug or alcohol related business with BUPD or BPD.Also as a private institution can’t you require students,under 21, to give full disclosure privileges to parents or other entities that are contributing towards a wonderful degree from BU?
    So that parents being able to check not only grades but police records would be a deterrent to this young and dumb behavior. Also consider Spring break, many BU students leave Boston, schedule it so that St Patrick’s day is included, schedule mid-terms for Halloween week,couple days before and after. BU knows the science behind young people making these decisions, use the knowledge and every tool available to deter this dangerous and undesirable behavior. I don’t see BU losing any quality students over strict drug and alcohol policy.

    1. Don’t you think that college students should be able to make their own decisions? If the only way to encourage positive behavior is by granting parents full disclosure, should young people be attending college? Also, midterms fall at different times throughout the entire semester; I could have a midterm for one class one week and a midterm in another class three weeks later. Not only is it impossible to follow the schedule you propose, but scheduling is dependent on how professors teach, and that should be prioritized over discouraging drinking during a holiday. Finally, I know that everyone I met at BU is a “quality student,” showing interest and talent in several different studies and activities at BU. A strict drug and alcohol policy that discourages normal socialization during holidays would in fact deter such students.

    2. My daughter was a CAS grad of BU in 2014. I feel ya’, BU Mom, but all I can say is…….let ’em go. You planted the seed, you taught them in the way they should go, and hard as it may be, it’s time to have faith that all those lessons have taken root.

      Yes, your child may very well drink. Or maybe not. These are young adults, but adults nonetheless, and hopefully they don’t make irreversible mistakes, but you know what? Ultimately, that’s on them. Time to give ’em wings and hope and pray for the best.

      You sound like a good, concerned Mom. I’m sure you did a good job. Keep in touch with your child (not every day) and have faith.

    3. Well said, BU Student & NOLA Dad. BU Mom seems rightly concerned, but there are serious potential problems with acceding to her requests. Students who are 18+ are legally adults & should be treated as such. Any disclosure of personal information to outside parties (parents included) can bring significant legal consequences. As a professor I’ve had parents ask about how their kids are doing in my class, but I can’t — & don’t — tell them anything.

      BU is among the leading Nanny Universities in the country, but even here the admin knows not to meddle too much — if only to avoid lawsuits. Granted, there is still the “In Loco Parentis” responsibility of schools, but it has limits, especially once students are legal adults. ILP still applies, but more to protecting people in their charge, not monitoring their every move. And concerns over “quality students,” whatever that means, do not have much validity. Quality is in the eye of the beholder.

  2. At McGill University on Montreal, where the drinking age is 18, students drink in on campus pubs or in clubs in the city. They learn to drink responsibly. It is no longer forbidden fruit. You won’t find students sneaking booze past the RA, instead they may have a beer with the RA. Students don’t roam the neighborhood looking for a party.

    It is said, partly in jest, that at Orientation (where beer is served) it is easy to spot the American students: they are the ones passed out on the lawn at noon. They learn pretty quick that is immature behavior.

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