Column: Freshmen, listen up

Welcome class of 2004. I know you are still settling in here on this second day of your Duke careers, but it is time you start to replace the image of Duke created in your minds by the brochures and form your own vision of the University. I hope this review of present and future campus issues will draw you into our campus-wide discussions. We are eager for your input. This is YOUR Duke now and YOU have to make your voice heard.

Don't you just love the Chronicle already? What was your first Chronicle about? Duke raising money, campus crime and President Keohane telling kids to lay their drunken friends on their sides so they don't choke on vomit. These are the first three items that will be with you for all your Duke career.

The best thing Duke does is raise money (the second is public relations, third is basketball and fourth is education) so there will be a lot of stories about that in the coming year. President Keohane has the uncanny ability to get people to give major amounts of money to Duke. I do not know how she does it, but she has always done it well.

Campus crime is something you will also hear a lot about, especially living on East Campus. I always loved how the administration puts its freshmen in the close proximity to crack houses. I am not sure if it is just by luck or if they realize how convenient for students it is. In any case, please avoid the drive-by shootings even though the end of drive-by shooting season is near.

The more I hear President Keohane speak, the more I realize why she is our President. How many other University presidents would give post-drinking advice to an incoming class? Tucked away with the messages full of hope and optimism about the next four years, she slips in a quick "don't get yourself killed" plug. That is skill; her team of speechwriters definitely earned their pay that day.

In the class of 2004's time here, the role of alcohol at Duke will be redefined. The University's image as a sickeningly overpriced party school is one that the administration is desperate to change. Interim Vice President for Student Affairs Jim Clack and his battery of anti-alcohol initiatives are just one of the many waves of administration-imposed alcohol rules which started with the alcohol policy set forth in the early days of President Keohane's tenure.

In the years since, drinking at Duke has become quite different than what is was just 10 short years ago. Will Duke students make the transition from hardcore, binge drinking alcoholics to being responsible drinkers? Can that change best be made by more rules or by more education and more alternatives to alcohol-fueled events? Freshmen, remember what drinking at Duke is like now, because I guarantee you it will be different by the time you leave here. I know it is different from when I was in your position.

Race is another issue that will be debated and discussed much in the next four years here. Unlike alcohol, though, the issue affects everyone in the Duke community, from students, to faculty, to staff, and even to Durham residents. And, also unlike alcohol, it is not an issue that will resolve itself easily within the next few years. What will be needed, though, is an intelligent dialogue on the subject, one that is free of name-calling and closed-minded people.