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Last week, MIT paid $4.75 million in damages to the family of Scott Krueger, a MIT first-year who died of alcohol poisoning while rushing Phi Gamma Delta in 1997. In addition to the damages, the university endowed a $1.25 million scholarship and promised to drastically revamp its housing and drinking policies. For MIT, the settlement sheds harsh light on a negligent attitude that should have been fixed long ago. To colleges and universities across the nation, it is a concrete reminder they are responsible, at some minimum level, to provide a safe environment for their students...
...important to remember that MIT's attitude toward its undergraduates was the exception to the norm. For one thing, MIT does not guarantee housing to entering first-years. Consequently, many wide-eyed students seeking housing--and on a greater level, acceptance by their peers--find themselves vulnerable to the dangers and excesses of "rush week." Providing first-year housing should be part of any university's basic commitment to its students. Thankfully, as part of the recent settlement, MIT has agreed to provide all first-years with housing...
Certainly, the group at greatest fault is Phi Gamma Delta, the fraternity Krueger was rushing at the time of his death. But MIT's "hands-off" attitude toward its fraternities and social clubs is also to blame. Universities should be willing to subject these groups to greater scrutiny, particularly when they are suspected of questionable or dangerous practices. Indeed, Krueger is actually the second student this decade to die at a Phi Gamma Delta party: In 1993, over-intoxication caused Jeff Knoll to fall three stories to his death at a party thrown by the fraternity's University of Nebraska...
...while the recent MIT settlement should rightly be taken as an admonition and warning to other schools, Harvard's reaction need not be dramatic. For the most part, Harvard has shown foresight in these matters and taken appropriate precautions to prevent unsafe behavior and ensure the security of all of its students. All students are guaranteed housing during their entire four-year stay. Every first-year is required to attend a three-hour talk during orientation week about drugs and alcohol. All parties must be registered two days in advance, and the school is generally vigilant about shutting down parties...
...team will open the Northern Division schedule next weekend against Boston College and host MIT before the action moves outbound on the red line. Harvard will then host UMass...