The Truman State University Board of Governors voted Saturday afternoon to change the University’s alcohol policy, which opens the door for a pilot program slated to start next semester.
The pilot program policy, which has already been submitted to University President Sue Thomas, would allow students of age to have alcohol in West Campus Suites and the campus apartments.
The Board of Governors voted to change Truman’s Good Faith Effort policy, which states that the University will be committed to a good faith effort to maintain a drug and alcohol free campus, in a 4-3 vote. The policy now states that Truman will be committed to upholding the ideals of the Drug Free Schools and Communities Act of 1986. This act only prohibits unlawful consumption of alcohol, as opposed to the existence or presence on campus.
Janna Stoskopf, vice president for student affairs, said by making that change, the Board of Governors provided Thomas the ability to grant approval for a pilot program. Stoskopf has been working on this policy with a committee made up of representatives from Student Government, Residence Hall Association and Young Americans for Liberty.
“That provides the flexibility for the President to grant approval, if she chooses, for a pilot program to attempt to see how a policy change might play out and the implementation concerns and those types of things,” Stoskopf said. “Then from there we’ll see what the results of that are and how that defines where we go from there.”
Stoskopf said she thought there were some good comments from the Governors that supported the change and from those that were opposed to it. She said as the University continues its refinement of the policy, the concerns and values of the Board of Governors will be taken into consideration.
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