Masters to Review Alcohol Regulations

The House Masters, in an attempt to end growing controversy over the College's regulations on alcohol use, will review the rules in a meeting two weeks from today and may consider adopting alternative codes.

Dean Fox said yesterday he recommended that the Masters discuss the regulations at the regularly scheduled session because "it's apparent there has been some inconsistency" in the application of rules forbidding alcohol at House parties open to all undergraduates.

Student officers of several Houses have recently charged that the College has "cracked down" by enforcing the booze restrictions unusually stringently at their Houses. Most recently, Quincy House was forced to cancel a College-wide Halloween party after it was denied an alcohol permit by Archie C. Epps III. dean of students.

In a related development, Epps yesterday received a letter from the Student Assembly protesting the "unduly restrictive" codes and calling for a student-faculty committee to review the regulations.

He declined to comment yesterday, but has said previously, "I don't think a special committee is necessary" because the College is merely enforcing rules that have existed since the state drinking age rose three years ago.

Masters contacted yesterday said the principal purpose of their meeting is to clarify the current regulations, but several indicated the group--which drafted the existing codes during a series of meetings three years ago--may debate alternative policies.

The afternoon session may include debate on "whether the policy is too hard or too soft" and whether there are "alternatives we ought to be considering," David A. Aloian '49, master of Quincy House, said yesterday.

He and other masters declined to suggest alternative schemes, but Aloian said he assumes information will be available on other policies if the Master's executive committee decides to include formal discussion of alternatives at the meeting.

The masters briefly discussed the current dispute at a regular meeting last week after Fox brought up the issue, and decided to postpone discussion until the November 18 session when more time will be available for what William L. Bossert '59, master of Lowell House, yesterday called "an in-depth discussion.

Ann M. Wacker, associate master of South House and a member of the masters' five-person executive committee, said yesterday it is "hard to predict" if the masters will alter present rules, but she added that she expects masters to try to clarify the rules governing "the gray areas" of alcohol policy where inconsistencies have arisen.