I welcome you all to an open hearing and the University of Delaware spring break. And it's coincidence or not with St. Patrick's Day, the way we're going to run this, if this is an open hearing, what the way we're going to start as Kathleen 6A is the chairperson of the community that's investigating this. And she'll start out the hearing with a short presentation. And then after that, what we'll do is we'll we'll listen to each of the interested parties and will follow the usual Faculty Senate format. Each speaker will get two minutes to speak and we'll go around the room once. And then if somebody else has something to say, we'll go around the room again, and that way no single person dominates the discussion. >> So without further ado, let me give you a Kathleen Kerr blue. That means here, like I have no idea guarantee like that. >> Let's say that will time out. >> Let's see. >> I don't I don't see where I'll figure out where the lights will work on that. Well, here's your light bulb here. >> Oh, here we go. >> Changing your OK. You go set then that OK. And hopefully everyone can hear me. >> Okay. Great. Excellent. My name is capped linker. I am the Executive Director of Residence Life and housing and the chair of this taskforce. We have other Taskforce members in the room and when I get to the appropriate side, I will ask them to stand so you can see who they are. This is going to be a very brief powerpoint presentation. And then as Bob said, we were going to listen to you. That is our main purpose of being here today. We're holding listening sessions all around campus. So here's the issue. We are concerned for the safety, health, and welfare for students and community members. The Provost charged the task force early in the summer time to look at this issue and consider the possibility of changing the University spring breaks that it overlaps with St. Patrick's Day. So here are the task force members. There are several of us in the room to take notes and to listen to your opinions. If you are a Taskforce member, would you please stand so that people can see where you are in the room and that you are taking notes and we are well-represented. Thank you very much. And you can see as you read this list, it is a campus in a community task force. So we've got the mayor, we've got the, uh, university of police department representative captain on there, Rick dead Weiler, Bob Ashby, who was a New York restaurant owner, a graduate student and undergraduate students. So it's a very diverse group that's looking at this issue. So here was our charge, are charged. Consider the issues, challenges, and opportunities associated with moving spring break. And specifically what we've been discussing are the implications for student's academic success, welfare, safety, and protection of property. Worth thinking and talking about the relationship between UD in the city of New York. And we're investigating, researching how other universities have handled high-risk behavior on St. Patrick's Day and similar holidays. So we decided to hold a series of listening sessions. Today is the second to last one. We have one final listening session tomorrow at four o'clock interbank Theatre. And that isn't open session for anyone interested in attending. So my guess is that you are all well aware of the risks that are associated with St. Patrick's Day. And I say St. Patrick's Day, but it's really the weekends that bookend the holiday in addition to the holiday itself. So as we're studying this issue, we're looking at the ten day window that surround St. Patrick's Day. We're also comparing it to other data around homecoming, Halloween. We're looking at random weeks to see if there is any difference in the data. So these are the kinds of concerns, increase student incidence and arrest both on and off campus, increased increased reports or property damage again, on and off-campus, disorderly conduct of students on and off campus, and threats to student and community safety, health and welfare, including a fatal incident in 2016 that involved a student who was not a University of Delaware student. You're probably familiar with that. So as I mentioned, here are some of the information that we're considering. We have gathered crime and arrest data from both New York police and UDP D, going back as far as 2013 to analyze that, we're looking at the timing of other spring breaks at other colleges and universities, specifically in the region. Curious to see if we are attracting a lot of students to our campus during the St. Patrick's Day holiday because they are unseen or they are on spring break and we are not and really understanding the impact of the change on the academic schedule. And listening, of course, to stakeholder input. So this is the purpose of the listening sessions today, being one, to gather stakeholder input and to help us inform the taskforce recommendations. That task force has not come to any conclusions. Jet, we began our meetings in the summertime. We have spent September doing these listening sessions. We will reconvene in early October to consider all of the data that we have gathered. We think that there are three big categories of types of recommendations that we can make. One, of course, is a recommendation to move spring break so that it coincides with St. Patrick's Day. The other would be to just to leave spring break as it is unchanged status quo. The third option, which could be a combination. So consider additional interventions to protect safety and welfare of students. Community and property spent a lot of time talking with students about what those additional interventions might be that would be attractive and salient to them. And so here are our next steps, complete listening sessions. And as I said, we've got lots of people taking notes, so we have a good record of the listening sessions. We have finished actually gathering the statistics from the police departments are now analyzing that data and looking at other schools responses to similar holiday situations. There are several schools that have made this change several years ago. So we can now look at them and see what impact it's had on drinking culture on their campuses. And our recommendation is due to the provost By the end of October So that is the report that we will be writing during the month of October. So this time I invite my backup and he will facilitate a conversation. >> Thanks, Kathleen. >> So so the way that will handle this IS everybody will be allowed to minutes to speak. And I'm sure Katherine and members of the committee will answer questions that they have an answer to any of your questions going forward. So ofthe crystal, let me know when the two minutes is up. So do we have any questions or comments this month? >> A couple of things. >> What is compared to other writer? >> And also, let me ask you identify yourself, please. >> Yeah, it's about sober view of science and engineering compared to other holidays and other occasions is saying bad trick. >> How, how different that is in terms of alcohol-related incidents. >> This number to the idea that we don't want we want to move or our St. Patrick's, but some other times so that people from outside won't come and get. >> That means you have Promoting remark ought to go to the other. And that to me seems to be counterproductive. Thank you. >> Question in back, I have two comments. >> Identify yourself. >> I'm nutritional walk into R If I'm the Department of Sociology and might to concerns about the proposed change. One has to do with pedagogy, the other has to do with addressing the real issues that are underlying the symptoms that we see. So first of all, I teach a broad range of problem-based learning classes. I already experienced challenges with our delayed drop add period, not trying to do too much early in the semester, and then getting going for students to have time to do projects. >> I think that the shift and moves it moving APA spring break really poses severe challenges to be able to do that in a meaningful way to give students sufficient time to engage in such meaningful work, to have a break at a particular point, or to engage in that work on their own at a latter points. So I see this as really having the issue drive our pedagogy as opposed to the other way around. >> The second issue has to do with dealing with the underlying causes. I would be interested in hearing about some of the results from other campuses. >> But it seems to me that the idea that students won't find another day to engage in such behavior, either Cinco de Mayo or even just creating a spring drink. We can't on a random day, if we're looking at issues that are causing risky behavior, dangerous behavior related to those activities. >> I think that's what we need to look at, whether it's September or October or may, versus focusing on a very reactive stance, focusing on March 17th. >> Thank you. Any other questions or comments? >> Yes. Steve Bryant, applied economics and statistics. I'd like to know what the that the downtown business community is willing to do about the issues on St. Patrick's Day. >> As I recall, the bars open at 08:00 AM and that released at one time. And one of the local bars, the first 30 people in got to drink all day. >> For frey, I mean, it out don't the the the bar is particularly have some responsibility. >> In helping with this problem. I guess it's a question on that taskforce, Ali as well, in terms of city expectations, regulations. >> So it's absolutely something a question that we are considering. >> Thank Steve back. So that cancer English Department, Office of the Provost, I just think it's useful for people to know that Udi has had for a couple of years I Campus Coalition on alcohol and other drug abuse that's involve Bob Ashby and policy are the mayor and others UD PD and new work Ph.D. students and faculty and others looking at this, there are four working groups developing recommendations for addressing the underlying cause. >> Because I, your point is well taken, right? >> This is a symptom of a much bigger thing in this campus, has a more acute issue with binge drinking than our peers, frankly. >> So I understand the desire to get to the, to the root of it, but I just want to make sure people know that that is that's work that's been underway. >> And a lot of people the there are some of the people on the taskforce had been involved with the DMAIC is the change from the School of Public Policy and Administration. And I guess a question and a comment is, is the idea that if we move our Spring Break to coincide with St. Patrick's Day, that our students who go away are less likely to drink elsewhere and therefore likely to be safer? Or is it a confession that we can't handle our student population? We want them out of town before they knew arc, a kind of a collapse or a great. >> Your question is, is it a question of will we send them away? >> And are we assuming they'll be, Do we think that if we if we send students away, that they will be safer over St. Patrick's Day? Or is it the consumers are concerned that they're going to wreck the City of New York. And therefore we want them to be somewhere else. >> When they misbehave. >> Well, we don't send them away, close the residence halls or the students can stay. >> And certainly those students who live off campus, which is a majority of our undergraduate students, can stay in their apartments off campus. And so I think the question is the task force is looking at is would it change, resolve anything? Are we addressing the right problem, which is I think what your question was, or are we looking at the wrong problem? But I think that's exactly why we're collecting the data to try to understand the behavior on St. Patrick's Day and how it is relative to other homecoming, Halloween of randomly list picked weekends or ten day periods and thousand compared to that, certainly we would. The goal is to do something that will improve the safety of our students. The task force will not make recommendations that we think will decrease the safety of the students or decrease the safety and well-being of the community. The goal is to increase safety. We don't think this change will increase safety, then I don't think we'll recommend the change. >> We're going to have to ask them. >> Sorry. Seconds. Then for short report. Follow-up point is the evidence then from other from other universities that students are safer when spring break coincides, but St. Patrick's Day and students are either elsewhere or behave differently at their home institution. >> We're looking at that. We have looked at some schools and some of you are familiar with some of those schools that have students have circumvented the issue and have created alternative celebrations. Shamrock day. Penn State has one called say afterwards, whether it's taking that to explain that, yes, something like that. And so there are that that seems to be the cultural response of students, but we're looking into that further. They were looking at a bright enough sampling to schools. >> And I like to just offer a little bit more comment about how we're looking at this. >> Because the yard amidst the collecting all this data. And these questions are very, very good ones. >> But one of the questions that we're continuing to explore is, are all of the other colleges ON spring big break, then they come back to the day, come back to their homes in Delaware in the region. And the university is one of the only schools open in the area. So that using us as a destination party spot during their time on spring break from the other colleges. So we're looking at those dates and trying to compare, recognize one of the few schools, if not the only School who've been. So when everyone converges back home on their spring break, let's hang on to Delaware. >> And that's what party? >> So that's another question it was pursuing me. >> Do you have evidence yet? We're still Maryanne McLain, MATLAB sciences. So do I hear that we we actually don't know how many students stay on campus during spring break. That, that they are actually a variable that we also need to look at that because they're not leaving. >> It's not like everybody would would leave campus for spring break. >> In any event, we have no no, wait it out or occupy shut off campus. >> Students do other than anecdotal data, which businesses slow down, traffic slows down. But students who are in apartments or houses off campus or not obligated to vacate those spaces during spring break. So we have no one know way to officially count nor track over the course of several years the population. But I think all of us would know, know that if we think about spring break, it's quieter in town, best restaurants or less full. So we do know that there is a population that departs for various other places, but no, we don't. Residence halls on campus. We have very specific data about a very small population that chooses to stay on campus in the residence hall, silver spring. >> Any other questions from the first round? >> Aes can conquer English Language Institute. >> I wonder if you could tell us what the rationale has been for having the spring break where it is now. >> Until now. >> Maybe if we can compare different rationale, we can see that one astronomer that he wants to know why is the spring break where it is now? I think I'll go ahead. Time. You didn't get the question was why is spring break where it is now? And the reason is this the industry standard? >> Yeah. >> I looked at the schools in the CAA, our own conference, numeric each that Phemius conference >> And nine neighbors, Virginia and stay Villanova, Rutgers temple, Westchester, maryland. >> Lead me on. >> All of them have their vacation at the halfway point or later. >> That is, they have a 15 unfortunately a 14-week semester. We have the break after we've said that's what almost all of the other schools do, their, if you will, three outliers. Drexel has its break at the end of March, which is afterwards quarter effect. >> So it wasn't quarter systems to schools have their brakes later to cover religious holidays enable one school, I believe Binghamton actually says brain gray Easter, ASO. So I cannot find a school. >> That has to be what we said something. >> I think that would be the answer. >> See, presumably drinks they actually cover, they attract comes after spring break was during St. Patrick's Day. >> And I don't want to do is not anyway, I didn't bring that flaw. I know they received two weeks seven. >> Okay. >> Because somebody has probably heard me and they started January second could be because you are weeks in January, three weeks in February, there's 700. >> So it could be personally Kumar, Are there any other first-round questions? >> So one of the things I realized, presiding and I'm just supposed to run the show. But we have faculty here. And I think one of the things that we're interested in is the impact of the moving of spring break on pedagogy teaching. And so I'm not going to restrict our comments to that, but I think that we should pay attention to that. Please respond. You said you had another question. >> Could you put that slide back on? Which had three options. >> I'm not doing anything. >> Being something was the third one. The third one, It's kind of boggles my mind. Why don't we do that regardless. >> But I think that speaks to Matt's point that alcohol coalition is looking at that and that's the purpose of yaakov will Coalition is to understand from a whole variety of perspectives the way, the message to students, the code of conduct, and how it impacts student behavior, the city regulations, programmatic interventions, so that the alcohol coalition, very holistic week is looking at that. I think that's what that slide saying is that the task force in a responsible way and we're going to make recommendations that improve the safety of students. We're not just going to say the provost change it or don't. We're going to provide some context in terms of what we think. If we say don't change it, what we think might improve safety regardless of the dangerous, frankly. >> But my objection was to that point being associated St. Patrick's Day, of course, that that's your charge? >> Charge that we are looking at Halloween homecoming as well. >> Okay. >> Not because we were exiting Cinco de Mayo category to speak. I can also because I'm a member of the alcohol drug and alcohol coalition committee that Matt mentioned earlier. >> There is a lot of work and coordination that goes on right now. >> In fact, over the past two years, I think there has been significant coordination. >> Around St. Patrick's and how will we which are the two holidays where there's a spike in activity around IT again of activities for those holidays. So coordinating with the off camp, with built with the police department, with events and programming with our student affairs groups. >> There's been increased programs on campus to provide on-campus safe and alcohol free programs that may be a little bit more than other weekend they go through. There has been some in some increased activity and support around those Wii games. >> But is there more that can be done if we decide to not to? Now that I think was just to that third bullet point, are there other things that we can, we're just in non movement dynamics. >> And I'm sorry, I didn't mean to, but it seems like this seems like something new that Provost would be enlightened by, then we should have additional interventions. This isn't a problem that we have edited. We have had this thing for ages, many kind of Morgan. Thank you. >> And I drawn work in physics and I've been here since 1981. >> And I think that we don't want to just move the problem to another weekend, right? Which, which could happen, right? I think that we definitely need to do something to change the culture on Main Street. >> And with all respect to the work that's being done recently by this task force, it has been a concern of mine that during the past couple of years, there are now more alcohol-based establishments on Main Street than there were a few years ago. And if the university has done anything to express concern about this, I'm not aware of it. And this is really in contrast to what happened back in the mid 19 nineties when David Rose L, and the people who worked in Hawaii and hole, then we're really concerned about trying to change the culture on Main Street. And I would recommend that the members of this task force interview David grows L, find out what works. >> It didn't work. >> Maybe talk to a couple of other people who were around like Rowland Smith and try to get some idea about what more the university could be doing. And I'll just mention a couple of three things that I think should concern us, right? Number one, there is now a beer and liquor store on Main Street, like within 200 feet of campus that didn't used to be there. What impression does that create When kids and their parents are visiting town to choose a university? Are we? >> Does that send a message that, hey, this is a party town? >> But we have a restaurant which is serving beer in sort of like a cafeteria style format, which makes it harder to keep track of who's drinking, right? We have a movie theatre that will soon be selling alcohol where it's harder to see what's going on. And I'm not aware of the University wishing any concerns about any of these, at least not in public. >> Thank you, Steve. >> Yeah. And again, really steep hasty Hastings applied economics and statistics. >> Matt, if this coalition has been working for what you said two years? >> Yes. Yeah. >> What's what's come of it? I mean, is there has something been done? >> Yeah. And I credit characterized it on the fly, but the the coalition reports to Don Thompson, the vice president for student life. >> And I'm sure she'd be happy to update the Faculty Senate or, you know, whatever you think the best foreign would be nice to know what they've gotten. >> Yeah, I mean, I will say that I mean, John Morgan raises concerns about the Main Street establishment sped where we see the worst of the high risk drinking happening at u d is not on Main Street. It's it's in the off campus houses. >> It's it is under the radar and is not in the commercial establishments. >> That's where kids are getting into trouble is in apartments and places like that. >> Chris, follow-up on both what Steve said, oh, if it's a question for Matt or maybe Rick, but this idea that we are doing worse than our peers were. >> So Y, we know the answer to that question. But I promise there, there is the notion that we're doing worse than her fears and can be saved. >> Why? >> Yeah, if we're a larger been shrinking school, what about our culture is different than, I don't prefer doing worse than other schools in the more ease. >> I think that again, Nancy chase co-chairs the alcohol coalition with Don Thompson, and I think that they those two individuals would best answered that question and provide you an update on the coalition. Nancy is rich with data about us and comparison to other schools and also best practices that other schools are implementing and has brought that to the coalition. So I think that they are the two individual. >> Just answer those questions and to respond to the questions about what things have occurred in the programs that have resolved the collision. I've another question. >> What have I got here? You're adding up a first-round question. Dell or second by second round. >> I took the island to Josh iodine material science engineering to build a little bit on Matt's point. >> Well, obviously, drinking behavior on Main Street is potentially a problem. >> It's in the public where it's much easier to supervise them behaviour in off-campus tosses and dorms. And so you could argue that having bars on means P might actually be a form of harm reduction. Rather than send people to off campus houses where it's behind closed doors or the only way that there's interventions when the police are. >> So I think you should be a little bit careful about how you characterize that. >> Sort of in the back, there's a lot that are sociology. >> And I do want to say that I agree that this is an extremely challenging and difficult issue to deal with and not something that is new for our discussion I2C, that you drive down Chapel Street at any Thursday or Friday night. >> And that's where you see the students out on, you know, half falling onto the street there. And that's a challenge, a thing of how to deal with that. I think, however, that bringing our discussion back to pedagogy, that it seems that we don't really know how to deal with this issue. >> We are still grappling with it and I get I commend those who are working on it on these committees, but I'm very much concerned by just shifting around something like spring break, where there's a very good possibility it won't solve those root for underlying issues. It might push it Just to another day, or we can and again, fundamentally changed the way we teach our classes in the spring. Do not allow our students that break that is necessary for their own mental health and well-being as well as their scores. And where we have that grace period of drop add two weeks into the semester where I have students adding my class at 1159, The Night Of drop bad. It's very difficult to then imagine thinking two weeks later that they're going to be off for a week without having covered substantial amount of material in that course. >> Thank You. Are there any other second round questioned? >> Steve, does anybody know why we don't use the term bust more of these parties. I lived not far from the houses where the young man fell to his death. And I can assure you on any sunny Saturday afternoon, there was a hundred two hundred college kids in the parking lot in the back of those houses drink. And I would and I've been by their St. Patrick's Day when there's two police cars parked out front, kind of monitoring the situation but really doing nothing about it. >> Why down thing, I guess. I mean, that's a question actually. >> So I took the gown, you know, that the Police Academy last spring and it came up while I was taking the Police Academy and their chairs so that they could do several questions. There's who has jurisdiction over what areas? What's university jurisdiction was town jurisdiction. Another one though is you can't go. We're on suspicion of law of parking nearby. They feel is the best at that point that they could do. But it would be better to get to a cop here to tell us. For sure will what, what, what, what the problems are gone since you point a I will add I will give you three terms. >> Jurisdiction, fires and then cause, right. It is Lauren's right in the city and New our jurisdiction, probable cause and war. >> And all they have to do is sit there for five minutes and a drug college kids would wander out and that would give them probable cause? >> Not necessarily. >> Okay. All right. >> I'm not going to debate it, but why did I bring to crop could take? But they really don't want to just start walking into people's houses. >> It's not in their houses, it's the public I mean, anybody who walks by their concealment. >> Private right. >> The party they busted last week was on private property. What was the probable cause to go there? >> I don't know. >> And they they they they have please representation under 30 taskforce. >> No, I'm not talking about a Udi policemen. I'm talking about a student who is a New York policemen, budgeted or the New York mayor. >> And two, presumably New York mayor, right? G presumably talks that places them where. Are there any other questions? >> Chris Williams that files while ecology, which actually brings some really great points. >> And just for the sake of to be o, bring up some questions. >> Is first the idea of if we change the date to something that's not in the middle than we're we're causing undue harm in terms of how much time they have. >> And I would argue the counter to that. We don't have that luxury and fall with who? >> Thanksgiving. So near the end. >> So that's the one thing I wonder about. And the other two is point I have is for myself in the spring, I teach a very traditional class, so I don't have them in the fall. >> I have much more interactive questions. >> Spring, it's very traditional, and so I'd say for those classes really doesn't matter what day we switch this to. >> It's it's all the same and it's not going to affect the, the teaching for those students. So I just wanted to throw that out as an alternative. >> Fine. >> Yes, yes. Me. >> So I appreciate in the fall I teach intro to sociology often and that wouldn't make that much of a difference as well. But I, you know, as we are encouraged in this university should take off problem-based learning to do innovative learning to make use of this didn't mean multimedia design center engage students in meaningful research and our classes. >> Those are things I think many of us have embraced and that restricts us from doing that. In the spring, I feel the way that I structured this classes, the difference in the fall is that a Thanksgiving break is later, so it is somewhat of a break. It I think it's too late, but it's structured around a major holiday that many of our students are accustomed to taking part in. So that makes sense there already off for Thursday and Friday. So we've made that adjustment. >> It's not now in the semester, it's not beginning of September or middle We're talking about a very different strategy for moving it up in the spring as opposed to later. >> If that proposal would really save lives, my pedagogy be damped, right? Doesn't matter. I'll have to suck it up. But I'm concerned that this is a reactionary measure to what happened last year with the student falling off the roof. >> I don't think it actually addresses the problems. And so in impacting pedagogy in that serious way, it doesn't make sense to me to do that. What it probably won't solve the issue. >> Thank you. Yes. >> I think it's probably also reactionary. Whoop. >> It as well. >> Have a comment because it's, I've seen no data or information to actually comment on. >> So it's tough to actually make an informed comment, but I'm kind of concerned about Cinco de Mayo. And so without any data, if the data shows that, think of the Mayas also covalent St. Patrick's Day, but it can do it with an alternate spring breaks, some one-year Cinco de Mayo, one-year St. Patrick's Day orifice. >> As worse. >> We're just going to say we'll take vacation, spring break. And think of the mile, because Thanksgiving break is late, will have spring break. >> And so and I think those are all just examples of of just a knee-jerk reaction to cover up the the basic issue. Thank you. Yes. >> I have a question and a further comment. And the question is, is I'm Morgan physics, is, is this task force going to really be able, going to be in the best position to submit a report to the provost just about four weeks from now? Or would you benefit from having more time? And I guess that's something for you to discuss with the provost strike because I think it's more important to get the decision right than to make it quickly. I would also think that there's a lot that could be done with just scheduling classes and scheduling tests to keep some of these problems under control. I was told that probably about 15 years ago, Roland Smith, when he was the dean of students, ask the learner college Administration to schedule more classes on Fridays to reduce the number of kids who words whose partying started already on Thursdays. >> Thank you. Okay. Any other questions? Yeah. >> Do you think that smells a filmmaker I'm sorry, department nature. >> So do you think it smells a little bit like a reactionary response? I think the real problem has many university presidents will tell you is that we have a legal age of 21. >> Thankfully, mothers against drunk driving, and that's the larger issue in this debate, since drinking is illegal for all of our kids through their college careers going, it's very difficult for them to find ways to imbibe legally or illegally. >> So it's a very I think that situation is what's causing the way they drink mail. >> And I'm not sure these band-aids, you're going to help much with that. That is just the way they do it. >> Any other questions? Yes. Now we're on the floor is open. >> Now, Kevin, I'd be interested in what the students had to say. You've already met with the students, right? What they have to say. >> Neither the graduate students, undergraduate students supported moving spring break. They were very thoughtful in their comments. They met with the undergraduate students, graduate students senate MET precisely. >> I think they feel like the students culture would work around any other comments? >> Well, if there's no more comments, I think we'll close the session. Committee members will be here tomorrow. Say something not too private to be setting pump thick and and I'll thank you all for attending. Thank you. I'm going to do
2016-2017/04Open Hearing on Spring Break- Sept 26th 2016.mp3
From Joseph Dombroski May 06, 2020
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