It’s been a major focal point during the first week back: Guilford College’s new and improved amnesty policy. Students have been lectured on the importance of this new rule everywhere from residence hall meetings to orientation assemblies.
The updated amnesty policy, which protects students who call for emergency services for fellow students dangerously under the influence, has been pushed as one more great thing provided by the administration, but in reality, it’s still widely outdated and has definite flaws.
Although it’s been extended to include hard drugs as well as alcohol, the policy still offers no judicial protection for the student in need of medical attention.
Students are encouraged to seek help on behalf of others, but the impaired student’s potential consequence could dissuade their peers from contacting Public Safety or emergency services. The victim of the scenario should be exempt from consequence as well in order to eliminate any possible reason to not reach out.
The recent amendments of the policy may have resulted partly from the persuasion of a growing club at Guilford, Students for Sensible Drug Policy.
Last June, SSDP proposed a new, comprehensive policy based on that of the University of Tennessee, which protected both students involved. However, Guilford administration only ended up adding one small piece to our policy: the inclusion of drug use.
“While this is a minor step in the right direction, it is not a comprehensive medical amnesty policy because it offers no protection for the student who is undergoing a medical emergency,” said SSDP co-founder and senior Chris Honein in an email interview. “Schools around the country are implementing medical amnesty policies, but our administration is unwilling to make these changes.”
The Guilford administration sees things in another light.
“We think about how to best draft policies around what our Guilfordian values are,” said Steve Mencarini, the new Associate Dean of Students. “We need to make sure we hold accountable students who violate our policy. … To give amnesty to the student who has the medical emergency is not necessarily the kind of message we want to be sending to students.”
However, many would argue that our school values also revolve around student safety and well-being. The dissuasion of drug use is, of course, important, but at some point, we must accept that many college students will get high or drunk eventually. If dissuasion doesn’t work, the best our community can do is try to provide them with a safe, secure environment in case of a medical emergency.
Unfortunately, the potential prosecution of the impaired student does pose a sizable barrier for many.
“People are still afraid that they can’t come forth if someone is experiencing some sort of medical emergency involving drugs,” said SSDP Communications Director and sophomore Caleb Bausman. “We want them to be able to approach someone and get help without any reservations.”
The first of our oft-praised Guilfordian core values is community. The College strives to accept and lead all toward their careers and passions.
We, as said community, should take the utmost care to try to provide a safe and secure environment for all students. Drug and alcohol charges can often lead to probation, serious stains on a permanent record and, in some cases, expulsion or major suspension, all of which can seriously harm a student’s mental health, let alone their future.
Students for Sensible Drug Policy is currently petitioning to re-amend the amnesty policy to include protection for both students involved. Help protect all Guilford students by signing the petition and pushing for change in the policy.
