This pandemic has brought such great sorrow to Westfield State, that with the holidays coming up students deserve to have fun dressing up with their friends. There are ways to have fun on Halloween, even during a pandemic. However, it’s important to be careful of the consequences if it gets out of hand.
Residential Director John Zocco believes that a definition of a party is any gathering that attracts a lot of attention, like loud music.
On Halloween, the rules are very much the same. People need to stay in their designated buildings, and if you live in a “dry” building there cannot be any alcohol.
Everything that gets reported goes through the Student Conduct Board to determine any punishments. Zocco’s goal is, “for the students to have fun, but realize the impact of their choices during this pandemic.”
The first person a student will see before Student Conduct will be a Residential Assistant. Violet Ekstrom, an RA from University Hall, believes in the same aspects of a party as Zocco, but that there is more to it than just being loud. For example, if the RA sees hard alcohol, like vodka, she would automatically have to call ISO.
Ekstrom said that, “We will start with a warning, but if someone reacts rudely towards us, we report them.”
For University Hall, each person in the suite is allowed to have two people. If rules are broken those extra people will be asked to leave or the RA will have to call ISO.
The consequences have not changed because of Halloween, but all rules that students have been given still apply. Students should have fun, but still be safe.