Freshmen feeling fatigued after Orientation Week should be advised not to lose too much sleep over the matter.
For the first time this Fall, residents of each of the 14 dormitories on East Campus will vote to designate Courtesy Sleeping Hours, a time in which optimal resting conditions are enforced in the residence halls during the wee hours of Sunday through Thursday nights.
Campus Council Vice President Kevin Thompson, a senior, said students were marginalized by the manner in which the policy was implemented. Although Eddie Hull, dean of residence life and executive director of housing services, has said he hoped to collaborate more with student leaders in the coming year, Thompson said he and Duke Student Government President Jordan Giordano, a senior, did not learn of the Courtesy Sleeping Hours until they were alluded to at a First-Year Advisory Council training session.
"At the time, I was sitting with Jordan. He looked at me in great surprise, and [the policy] was much to my astonishment as well," Thompson said. "It truly disappoints me because as a member of Campus Council for three years, I hold these issues very near and dear to my heart."
The policy was recommended by a wellness steering group chaired by representatives from the Duke Student Health Center, Counseling and Psychological Services, the Athletics Department, the Center for Multicultural Affairs, the Women's Center, the Office of Undergraduate Education and Residence Life and Housing Services, Hull wrote in an e-mail.
"Duke has noticed a correlation between a lack of sleep and numerous health issues among students," Hull said.
Freshman dorms will determine the start and stop times of their Courtesy Sleeping Hours-beginning at either 10 p.m., 11 p.m. or 12 a.m. and concluding at either 7 a.m., 8 a.m. or 9 a.m.-for a total quiet spell ranging from seven to 11 hours in length.
RLHS quiet hours policy stipulates that residents of East should never be able to hear their neighbors more than three doors away at any time, with the exception of 5 to 7 p.m. during the week and 1 to 6 p.m. on Sundays. The threshold will be reduced to two doors during Courtesy Sleeping Hours, and environmental cues such as dimmed lighting in the hallways may also be added to set the nocturnal mood, Lisa Beth Bergene, assistant dean for residence life on East, wrote in an e-mail. Quiet hours are observed on West Campus all day long during the week with the exception of 5 to 7 p.m.
Residence Assistants on East will enforce Courtesy Sleeping Hours only if residents bring forth complaints, Bergene noted.
By putting the duration of the quiet hours to a vote, Hull said he hopes the policy will empower students to exercise greater control in shaping their living environments.
"In this way we expect that students will be more likely to own their living environment and not feel like they must either suffer or expect the RA to alone manage the ability for students to sleep," he said. "It is a practical example of shared governance that should yield direct benefits for our students."
But Thompson said the implementation of the policy sidelined students, citing the new policy that prohibits students from building their own lofts-approved in June-as another decision RLHS made without student input.
Giordano said RLHS has a responsibility to include student leaders in their discussions about policy changes. "This is not the first time RLHS has made decisions and not told anybody about them," he added.
Hull said Bergene plans to evaluate the Courtesy Sleeping Hours with East Campus Council after officers for the body are elected. In the meantime, Thompson said he has requested a meeting with Bergene and hopes to weigh in on the policy before it is put before the freshman dorms for a vote.
"I highly doubt that on a day-to-day basis you often hear that much noise," he said. "But [the policy] creates an aura of restriction, an aura of hesitation in how you lead your life in a residence hall. It doesn't place students in a position of being responsible adults."
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