Last semester one of my hall mates, who lived on the same chem-free floor as me, had a bad habit of returning to his dorm almost every night drunk, high and rambunctious. On one particularly late night, he vomited several times in the middle of the hallway, leaving a really offensive puddle of puke only a few feet away from my door.
Although the guy was eventually relocated, it makes you wonder what made him request to live in a chem-free hall in the first place. My former hall mate may be an extreme example as far as I know, but he is definitely not an anomaly. Students who live in chem-free are not the teetotalers that everyone imagines them to be.
Chem-free students are, through a signed contract, obligated to not have any alcohol or drugs in their dorm rooms. Everyone gladly complies with this rule. Many people choose to instead drink outside their hall — attending house parties or simply visiting another floor in the building. This arrangement is actually a huge perk of living on chem-free floors and appeals to moderate drinkers who enjoy the occasional night out, but who still want a place where they can stay away from the party scene when they choose. Plus, why buy alcohol to drink in your room when you can go somewhere else and drink for free?
In a way, living in chem-free is kind of like cheating. You want to be able to drink, but you’d rather not have to deal with a roommate or hall mate’s hangover. Unfortunately (if you are a drinker), your roommate will have to deal with you. Those who do not drink at all may feel a little out of place. Binghamton is very much a party school, and although there are many students who do not drink, it can sometimes be a little isolating, especially during weekends and days such as Halloween. There isn’t really anything to do besides party. Maybe going to Wal-Mart and watching a movie? Yay? It doesn’t take long to get sick of that.
During the weekends, chem-free floors are notoriously quiet and empty. In many ways, chem-free housing is probably more like quiet-living housing than anything else. Since most people also like to keep their doors closed, you never really know if anyone is in their rooms. Therefore, the floor can sometimes feel really empty (not exactly the most socially conducive situation) because everyone is either out with their friends or studying. It’s a lot like walking through an empty hospital. Creepy, to say the least.
The quietness can be a good or bad thing, depending on what you are looking for. If you want to live in a hall where everyone’s doors are open and where the atmosphere is more social, chem-free may not be for you. If you want to live somewhere that is a little bit more isolated, where you can study without many distractions, chem-free would be your ideal dorm. The lack of drunks (or people, for that matter) definitely helps keep noise level down.
For anyone who is thinking about signing up for chem-free housing, I highly recommend it. Just know what to expect. There are a lot of pre-med students who live in chem-free; therefore, partying and socializing tends not to be our first priority. There is also this misconception that chem-free halls are filled with creepy loners and religious zealots, but that is just not true. In fact, if you are a creepy loner or a religious zealot, you’re not going to fit in very well in chem-free — just to let you know. Otherwise, the bathrooms and halls tend to be cleaner in our dorms and the RAs are really laissez-faire. Keep all of this in mind when you sign up for next semester’s housing.