Residence Life Office is requiring guests to register
Make registering guests a priority

Brittany Hutton | fact checker
bhutton@smcvt.edu

The 300 townhouses are a hot-spot for parties on weekends, attracting many guests for the fun. Alex McIntire, photo

On the St. Michael's College campus, the weekend is a time when students get out of control. Empty beer cans line the 300s field, broken glass adorns campus sidewalks, and frequently guests come to visit.  This year, St. Michael’s Residence Life Office has been working hard to make sure guests are being registered.

Safety first

Safety on campus is Residence Life’s number one concern. That safety is being jeopordized when students invite guests on campus without registering them with the college, says Peter Soons, director of safety and security.

Residence Life has stepped up its efforts to make sure guests are being registered, trying to make sure they know who the guests on campus are, according to Soons.

Director of Residence Life and Assistant Dean of Students Louis DiMasi says he has noticed more problems with guests, both welcomed and unwelcomed on campus this fall.

When it comes to safety, students are obligated to check in their guests, DiMasi says. Following the abduction of a University of Vermont (UVM) student last year, Residence Life and Security have been more concerned that everyone is safe, he says.

Making it a duty

Student Association (SA) President Alex Monahan says it is not hard to register a guest. Students have to fill out a guest registration form with signatures from everyone in their house or apartment, he says.

St. Michael's Security cruisers routinely cover and scan the campus during the week for anything, or anyone, that may look out of place. Alex McIntire, photo

“With P-Day and other major events, a guest cannot enter unless they have the guest registration form,” Monahan says.

Monahan wants to make registering guests a duty, similar to registering parties on campus. However, he does not want to make it a hassle, he says

“The beginning stages are hard and in the future it will be better,” he says. “It will become second nature.”

On page 29 of the St. Michael’s Student Code of Conduct and College Policies handbook, under guest policy, it states that students are responsible for their guests and any damage to the college that is caused by them. Also, a guest can only come to campus if all of the roommates agree; and hosts must be with their guests at all times.

Monahan says colleges and universities in Boston do not let guests through the buildings without being registered. He does not want that stringent policy at St. Michael's, however something needs to change, he says.

Let it be known

Monahan has heard that there have been fights with guests and neighboring UVM students coming to campus, he says, but has no direct experience with the problem. Monahan wants to see the guest policy being used more often because of these recent issues, he says.

DiMasi, as well as Residence Life, knows that students are inviting guests without consent to the school. They want to see students follow the student handbook guidelines so they can have a better sense of who is on campus.

Students have asked Residence Life to make registering guests more of a focus, so there are no problems in the future, DiMasi says.

Above is a copy of St. Michael's college policies handbook and the guest registration form for students to fill out for Residence Life. Photo illustration by Alex McIntire

Jean Couture, resident director of the townhouses and Hodson, encourages students to use the guest policy forms.

“What if something happens to your guest and you're not there?” Couture says. “It will be nice for us to have a contact.”

Couture says there have been incidents with guests this year. Guests that are registered are aware of what they are not supposed to do on campus, Couture says. Guests who are not 21 cannot drink alcohol, no damage can be done to the campus, and no physical or verbal altercations can occur.

‘We are trying to raise awareness and trying to make the system utilized so more people register their guests,” DiMasi says. “We are trying to build a positive community.”