CC students returned to campus this year excited to get back to spending weekends (and many weekdays) out on the town (or in the neighborhood). But more parties than usual are getting shut down by Campus Safety and even police officers at what feels like a premature hour.
For CC students whose summers were taken up by internships or tedious jobs, much of the anticipation of returning to campus centers around CC’s social scene. While Colorado College is certainly not a top party school, we do understand what it means to work hard and play hard.
During Blocks 1 and 8, when the senior calendar makes its biannual appearances, we play the hardest. The document, formatted like a calendar and filled in by people hosting parties, spreads like wildfire. It might read like a challenge to go to a party a day for the whole Block. Though it only sticks around for a few short weeks, the anticipation surrounding the campus party scene quickly spreads throughout the student body and creates a giddy buzz during the beginning and end of the school year.
This year has already seen incredible parties like “Craigsbiza,” “Jorts and Borgs” and the wig party, but unfortunately, each ended prematurely after either the Colorado Springs police or CC Campus Safety showed up to end the fun. As the red and blue lights warn off partygoers, students file out of backyards, stumbling into alleyways with heads hung low. In light of an unusual number of nights out being cut short, I asked myself what was really going on.
As a junior, I’ve had plenty of interesting experiences over the past two years on campus, particularly the parties filled with loud music and crowd-weaving in search of friends. Don’t get me wrong, there were certainly times when parties were shut down early in years past, but having nearly every party on the weekend snuffed out is unheard of.
From my perspective, the outcry on campus is not necessarily that these parties are getting shut down, but when they are shutting down. After spending our weekdays working tirelessly, we want our weekends to consist of long nights out and post-games that run into the wee hours of the morning.
Instead, during this first Block, almost every party has been shut down before midnight. And, a day-party at popular party house 1020 was shut down before 5 p.m.
“I think it’s super disappointing that so many off-campus parties have been getting shut down. Given the demands of the Block Plan during the week, off-campus parties are a great way for CC students to blow off steam and connect with each other on the weekends,” Luke Flangel ‘27, who lives at 1020, said.
In talking to students around campus, I’ve gathered that the consensus is consistent with Flangel’s feelings. This school is inherently stressful; one class fills up your morning and you spend your afternoon at lab or finishing an entire book in one night.
After spending our weeks working so hard, we yearn for the weekends. We plan our outfits, meet friends for pregames and get ready to hear freshmen ask, “Wait, where is Craig’s?” Students rely on these weekend functions to socialize, de-stress and take a break from the grind.
It’s not like we have a huge party scene. Many students have pointed out that, compared to larger universities, our campus social scene is relatively small. Given the size and scale of our parties, students question whether the level of noise and disruption actually requires the frequent shutdowns we have experienced this year.
“Students are wondering what the ideal solution is because we want to work with the community and not upset anyone’s way of life, but it is a college campus and compared to other schools, we have a tame campus,” Tessa Frantz ‘27 said.
Frantz is one of the five girls who live at the campus go-to party house, “Craig’s.” Frantz and her roommates have meticulously planned parties for students to enjoy this year, including one of the Block’s best, Craigsbiza. “We had four DJs lined up, and the last thing anyone wants to hear is someone standing in the DJ booth turning the music down and telling everyone to go home,” Frantz said.
When the police or Campus Safety show up, the houses’ tenants are responsible for talking to them and controlling the situation before the authorities have to take over.
“Campus Safety has been super nice to us, and they do want us to have a good time and have parties, but there’s not much they can do when they get noise complaints from neighbors; they’re forced to shut it down or at least have it be quieter,” Emma Serralles ‘27 said.
“The police have said that there’s not any specific policy, but the decibel level can’t go over 50. Once it gets over that, they have the right to shut things down and if we continue to get noise complaints, there could be a fine in the future,” Frantz said.
I spoke to Sophia Murphy ‘27, the class president, about understanding the neighbors’ frustration on weekdays, but wanting to find a middle ground. “I think if we’re both able to meet each other where we’re at and understand [our neighbors] have lives too, and they are not always out to get us when it’s 11:30 on a Wednesday. But on weekends, I don’t understand their frustration as much.”
Murphy also said that a recent mixer she went to started at 8 p.m. and was shut down after just an hour and 15 minutes, forcing the group to move to a different house.
Many of the senior houses that throw parties have begun taking precautionary measures in hopes of avoiding conflict. The students who live at Craig’s brought homemade cookies to their neighbors to kindle a good relationship with their neighbors. “Our strategy has been to lead with kindness,” Frantz said.
As these relationships continue to grow, the hope is that we’ll see fewer cops and more late nights.