This year, my living situation is very different from last year. My freshman year was spent in Lyon, where any weekend night, and usually during weeknights, a party could easily be found. This year, on the other hand, I occupy a room in second floor Blaisdell, deep in the realm of substance-free. Although I have little trouble with the idea of not having alcohol or drugs in the dorm, there are definitely some things that are less than ideal about living in substance-free. I feel that sub-free has many good points and bad points. Pomona ought to do more to inform people of the consequences of living in sub-free as people fill out their housing forms.

People who live in substance-free seem to be very divided on the issue. They either love it or hate it. I know many people who have spent their entire Pomona career far removed from the presence of alcohol and feel that this is far better than the alternative. On the other hand, there are plenty of people who, regardless of whether or not they do drink, wish they’d never signed up for sub-free at all. Of course there are going to be people who feel passionately one way or the other, but why does it seem that there is so little middle ground?

Those who dislike living in sub-free have many arguments against it. To many, they feel that there is a stigma placed upon those who live there. It is as if the rest of campus looks down on those who choose to abstain from drinking. Truthfully, there are plenty of people, in sub-free who drink. And, to most people, this doesn’t matter anyway. It’s more the unwillingness to be exposed to the rest of college life that I find bothersome.

One freshman who lives in sub-free says she requested it because she didn’t want to deal with people throwing up in the bathrooms or in the hall on weekends. When I first filled out my housing form, I did the same, and for the same reason. I was actually rather disappointed to discover that I had been placed, not in substance-free, but in Lyon. I dreaded the night substance-free ended, only to learn my fears were grossly unfounded.

Most of those who live in sub-free, and enjoy it, are not exposed to what life is like in other dorms. As that student said, "You should leave college with less misconceptions than you come to college wtih, and sub-free essentially creates misconceptions." Many people on my floor are quite unexposed to drinking, and, consequently, not very comfortable with it.

When I came to college, I was just as much, if not more, uncomfortable around drinking. Being placed in Lyon helped me learn that drinking was far different from the way I had imagined it. It saddens me to see people who may never realize that college drinking is not just about drinking until you pass out, its about being a little crazy and having a lot of fun with your friends.

Although the stigma and the sheltered nature of sub-free are huge disadvantages that I feel reduce the scope of the college experience and separate many sub-free freshmen from the rest of campus, there are definitely advantages of substance-free. Although many people end up regretting the decision to live in sub-free, there are plenty of students who are very happy with the housing situation. It does provide a living environment, whether or not one goes out to parties or not, that is free of drunkenness and wild parties. While personally, I’ve preferred living outside of sub-free, I know plenty of people who are happy to be here.

Another problem is that the number of incoming freshmen requesting sub-free always exceeds the number of students who can live there. There are, then, people who would be much happier in sub-free who aren’t there, while people who didn’t want to be surrounded by constant drug use are placed there. When filling out the housing form, incoming students don’t yet know that Pomona freshmen halls vary widely. It’s just not either substance-free or upstairs Lyon.

Incoming students are forced to choose whether or not to request substance-free before they know the true scope of the decision. One of my friends chose sub-free the summer before her freshman year based solely on the fact that she did not drink in high school, and did not really hang out with the people who did. She later greatly regretted this, as she found that people placed a stigma on her when she went to parties, and that her sponsor group looked down on her for choosing to drink. Her biggest complaint was that the college forced her to choose her housing situation with little knowledge of what Pomona’s social atmosphere was like.

The solution I propose is to provide students with more information as they fill out their housing forms. The college should enclose the opinions of a few students who have lived in sub-free along with the housing forms. If some of these are from students who like sub-free, and others from students who don’t like it, incoming freshmen can decide why they want to be in sub-free, and if their reasons are based on actuality or on stereotype.

Letting new students know how current students feel about substance-free will help them make better decisions about where they want to live. As it is, many students request sub-free because of a fear of what non-sub-free dorms will be like. Unless they indicate that they want to be in a high-substance area on their housing form (say, by rating value of a drug free environment as 0 out of 10), chances are they will not be placed there. As it is, students really would be happier in substance-free are not able to live there, while many choose to and later regret it.

The college needs to make it easier for incoming students to make an informed decision. Although my personal experience and opinion may be that it is more valuable to be exposed to things in one’s first year at college, there are people who feel the other way, and they should be able to make that choice. Students just need to know more about the housing choice they are making.