Another student, a junior at the College who also asked to remain anonymous, says she faced disciplinary action after a roommate took her to UHS after she had been drinking her first year.

UHS notified the junior's proctor of her Saturday night trip to UHS, without telling the proctor the reason why she was taken to urgent care. After the proctor asked the student why she spent the night at UHS, she told him the incident was alcohol-related. He promptly reported her to the Freshman Dean's Office (FDO).

The Law

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Certainly, any college alcohol policy has to recognize the inescapable fact that in the state of Massachusetts, the consumption of alcohol by any individual under 21 is against the law.

But if a college's primary concern is stopping binge drinking--more so than underage drinking--the strictest of policies may not always be the most effective.

Unlike binge drinking, "underage drinking isn't a question of morality, but a question of legality," says Dean of the Faculty Jeremy R. Knowles.

However, if you accept the fact that college students are going to drink--a fact that some colleges do--then your efforts shift away from attempts to prevent them from drinking to efforts that recognize they will. The focus becomes ensuring the students' safety when they do drink.

This reality is nothing new for Harvard administrators.