In Europe the legal drinking age is 18. In the United States it’s 21. Yet, the limits that separate legal from illegal and responsible from irresponsible will no longer matter at TCU.

Next fall, students older than age of 21 may have their right to drink suppressed on school-sponsored trips. Seems that while the university advertises its ability to mold us into ethical leaders, it doesn’t trust us enough to prove that outside the TCU bubble.
Understandably, the university wants to avoid disaster. However, this solution is more of a cop out and ignores the bigger issue.

Most students spend their entire lives, up until they come to college, under the watchful eyes of their guardians. College is supposed to be the training course for the real world. If we needed nannies or chauffeurs off campus, why don’t we start recruiting parents to come along too?

The university sponsors students for conferences and seminars to better equip them for what’s out there. These students are usually chosen by faculty or staff who know their abilities and believe they show promise to gain from the experience. If someone can’t make it without being monitored, he or she shouldn’t be wasting the university’s money in the first place.

Perhaps campus officials should put more effort into explaining school pride and responsible behavior instead of taking away student freedoms. Telling students they can’t drink is not alcohol education. If the university wants to avoid a bad reputation, maybe it shouldn’t make its students seem like uncontrollable drunks.