Preamble

The members of the Colby community declare their intention to live and work on a campus where social behavior befits the extraordinary intelligence and camaraderie of the student body, where employees focus on tasks designed to undergird the achievement of teaching and learning, and where scholarship and personal excellence have the opportunity to thrive.

We affirm this intention by adhering to the following community expectations:

• We, the students, faculty, staff, trustees, alumni, and families of Colby College, affirm the fundamental values of our community, including respect for ourselves, respect for others, and respect for our physical environment.
• We expect all members of the Colby community to strive for excellence in our primary roles at the College.
• We expect the opportunity to thrive and grow at Colby in an atmosphere of rigorous intellectual pursuit. We affirm our intention to integrate our academic, intellectual, and social lives and to challenge, in ourselves and in our community, behaviors that impede the ability to achieve that integration.
• We recognize the contributions and sacrifices, from students and families, alumni and friends, employees and Waterville neighbors that form the foundation of Colby's position as one of the finest liberal arts colleges in the world. We affirm our intention to honor those contributions and sacrifices by living as responsible, respectful members of the community, and by taking full advantage of the opportunities afforded by Colby.
  

In light of these expectations, with specific reference to alcohol use and abuse:

• We affirm the legal right of some in our community to consume alcohol but insist that it be consumed in a manner that promotes a climate essential to the freedom to study, to think, to speak, to work, and to learn.
• We expect our leaders to stand for a community in which alcohol abuse and the many negative behaviors associated with it are confronted and condemned.
• We expect to be afforded opportunities to be educated, and to engage in open, thoughtful dialogue about alcohol use and abuse.
• We affirm that abuse of alcohol is disrespectful to ourselves and dishonorable in light of the sacrifices made by others.
• We expect our friends and colleagues to confront us when we behave irresponsibly, disrespectfully, or dangerously in our use of alcohol. We affirm our intention to intervene when we encounter such behavior.