Case #3: Parietals, Social Life and the End(s) of Sex

Descriptive Dimension

What do you as a student think is the reason for parietals? What does the Ad Hoc committee on the Future of Residential Life think is the rationale for this policy? Does the University appear to view parietals as a religious issue or a social issue or something else?

Normative Dimension

What if any goods do parietals help facilitate? What if any goods to parietals frustrate? What are general principles used in ranking organizing or delaying recognition of these goods? Do the students and the administration have fundamentally different visions about what is good for students?

Practical Dimension

How does each party envision the practical consequences of these judgments playing out? How will the effectiveness of the current policy be measured? Is this policy creating or solving problems? Would it make a difference if the theological rationales were communicated to students?

Fundamental Dimension

Thinking through each of these positions, why is freedom with respect to men and women in undergraduate residence halls so important? Do parietals cultivate freedom or curtail freedom? Do parietals help to facilitate building student character or do these rules delay student maturity?

Sources for Discernment

Thinking through these positions, what reasons are given to support these claims? Based on the scripture selections provided, do you think the University's vision for harmonious community life is based on specific biblical texts, a selection of these, or something else?