UA to host forum on parental notification of alcohol abuses

At its weekly meeting last night, the Undergraduate Assembly announced plans to hold a public forum on the University's proposed policy of notifying parents of student alcohol violations. The forum -- to be held this Wednesday at 6 p.m. in Room 17 of Logan Hall -- will include a presentation by College of Arts and Sciences Dean Richard Beeman on the history of the federal law permitting parental notification by colleges, as well as time for students to offer comments about how Penn should approach its notification policy. A committee chaired by Beeman recently gave a list of recommendations to Provost Robert Barchi about ways in which the law -- which was passed last September and authorizes universities to notify parents of drug- and alcohol-related situations -- can be made applicable to Penn. University President Judith Rodin is expected to review the report within the next few days. The forum will be moderated by College sophomore Jo Piazza, chairperson of the UA's Alcohol and Drug Committee. Piazza, also a 34th Street magazine staff writer, said the UA "will try to be completely objective" in its approach to the open forum, explaining that her committee will use the opinions gathered at the meeting to prepare a UA resolution on parental notification. "We're being completely the students' voice," she said. Piazza added that other administrators will be invited to the forum and stressed her hope that they will listen to students' comments rather than offer their own opinions. "We don't want the administration's presence to be too overwhelming," she said. After the forum, she said, the Alcohol and Drug Committee will meet to write a draft resolution which will be e-mailed to all forum attendees the following day. The resolution will be presented to the full UA at its meeting next Sunday. Piazza noted that the committee is hoping to gather opinions from students both supportive of and against the University's proposed policy in order to put together a comprehensive resolution. The forum will allow students to offer comment on "every little nuance of the policy," she said. "We want to work something out where the students can coincide with the faculty," Piazza said. "We want everyone to reach some sort of compromise." And Piazza emphasized the significance of the opportunity provided by the administration's decision not to finalize the University's notification policy until mid-October. "We're given a lot of room for input here," she said. UA Chairperson Michael Silver agreed that the forum will provide a valuable opportunity for students to offer their opinions. "It seems that the administration values our input on this issue," the College senior said, calling the forum a "big step for us asserting ourselves, in terms of the alcohol committee."