Originally published April 5, 2000
by Adam Zurn

For as long as anyone at Millersville can remember the University has be confronting three different issues.

u Curbing Binge Drinking
u Combating Suitcase Campus Syndrome
u Confronting the complaint that there is nothing to do here on the weekends

The University has gone to great lengths to address and remedy these situations with mixed results. For curbing binge drinking, the Wellness Center has flooded the campus with posters stating that the average Millersville student drinks zero to four beers when "partying." That may be as affective as posting the speed limit on the Turnpike.

Last year Student Senate and Student Programs instituted the "Late Night Weekend Activities" program. The purpose here was to provide late night non-alcoholic activities every Friday and Saturday. The hope was to kill two birds with one stone-provide something for students to do on the weekends and give then a non-alcoholic alternative.

Attendance has been sparse most evenings except for several notable standouts. Most times those standouts were concerts that were local big-name band favorites. The problem with these late night activities is that students are either unaware or uninterested in the sponsored event.

If you want to stop binge drinking, the solution may be to encourage drinking rather than trying to push it further into the shadows. If you want students to stay on campus for the weekend and to stop complaining that there isn't anything to do, then give them choices that they will find fun and stimulating.

The solution might involve thinking "outside the box" and trying something radically different. There are some noticeable differences between "different" and "radically different."

Different: Having the Fitness Center open past 7 p.m. on Friday and Saturday.

Radically Different: Buying a liquor license and opening a "Chameleon-type" nightclub here in Millersville.

If Student Services, Inc. was to purchase a liquor license, the benefits to both students and the University would be many, not to mention another excellent money making opportunity for Student Services.

We envision a Chameleon-type nightclub. A facility open to all students and community members above the age of 18. For those of you not familiar with the Chameleon, it would work as follows. On the first floor, there is the dance floor and the stage for anyone not drinking or under 21. In order to drink, you go upstairs to the bar. From this location, there is some room to dance, enjoy your drink and watch the band.

In this situation, students would have to swipe their ID to buy a drink. After a pre-determined number of drinks, that person would be prohibited from buying more. This may sound somewhat uncool; however, this provides for an environment that realistically attempts to curb binge drinking.

This facility would also be able to book high-quality entertainment that would encourage students to spend the weekend and attend campus events. It would also provide an excellent internship possibilities for several different majors such as Public Relations, Marketing, Communications, Accounting, and many others.

Benefits:
u Teaching responsible drinking
u Keeping students on campus during the weekend
u Providing better weekend activity opportunities
u Reducing drunk driving as students come back from local bars in town
u Expanding student internship possibilities

Of course, this may not be a popular idea from the local community's standpoint. Nevertheless, the benefits for such a facility are practically endless and if anyone can do it and do it right, it would be Student Services. Besides, we've never heard of a nightclub
not making money