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KANSAN.COM / THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN / THURSDAY, MAY 12, 2011 / NEWS
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JASON WREN'S DEATH
November 1,2010
THE MUSIC OF THE LOST GARDEN
BY JEAN MARTIN
A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
HARDCOVER EDITION
WITH A CD
FROM THE AUTHOR
AND AN INTRODUCTION BY
JOHN D. COTY, AURORA BROWN
and RUBEN FELD
IS A STERNLY BILLIED
BEGINNER'S BOOK
FOR THE INTERNET
AUTHOR AND PRODUCER
WITH A FUNNY TITLE
AND A COMMON LANGUAGE
TEXT
RECOMMENDED BY
THE HALF MOON BANK
AND OTHER REVIEWERS
AND A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
HARDCOVER EDITION
WITH A CD
FROM THE AUTHOR
AND PRODUCER
WITH A FUNNY TITLE
AND A COMMON LANGUAGE
TEXT
RECOMMENDED BY
THE HALF MOON BANK
AND OTHER REVIEWERS
Jason Wren through the eyes of a fraternity brother
An excerpt from the article "A staggering tragedy" by reporter Alex Garrison in April 28, $ 200^{0} $
"Every time I hear somebody say he had a drinking problem, I just want to scream because Jason Wren did not have a drinking problem," the 2009 SAE freshman said on the condition of anonymity.
He said he felt people looked for a simple answer to Jason's death, but that it was an "unfortunate accident" — the result of the kind of drinking that was common at the University.
"People want to blame the fraternity, people want to blame him, but it's not that at all — it's
just college," the freshman said. "We drink. You binge drink, you drink to get drunk. It's what I do, that's what everybody does, that's what Jason did."
He said Jason did not have a problem because he did not need to drink but rather chose to drink because of the culture.
"By the books, yes, he had a drinking problem," he said. "I mean, I have a drinking problem. Every single kid here probably has a drinking problem."
KU SAE officer who helped organize this year's Jason Wren Initiative, asked the crowd some tense questions last month as he introduced the event's speaker.
"How many times have you gone out to get blackout drunk? How many times have you carried a friend home from the bar? Did you ever laugh at him, put him to bed, and say 'He's going to feel that'
tomorrow?
"These are all things we thought the night Jason passed away," Rumage said. "Think twice about it and ask yourself, 'How do I want this to play out?'"
He paused.
"So, the serious part being said,
"We all like to have fun, and we all like to drink, and the reason we're here is not to tell you 'Don't drink.' The reason we're here is to tell you to drink responsibly."
we're also here to have a good time." He flipped on a pair of sunglasses, black with neon orange framing. The audience snapped to life, laughing.
The second Wren Initiative highlighted the prickly issues in trying to reach college students — especially the underaged — with responsible-drinking messages.
One can point to Wren's death and say it means that underage drinking shouldn't be tolerated. Another can say it means that the underaged need the most help with safe-drinking education.
"Why do we let our children, underage, sleep in a house that has open alcohol and no adult supervision? It was the biggest mistake in my life.
MARLESA RONEY
Vice provost for student success
"Sometimes I feel like our hands are tied behind us because we know what's happening,but we can't really deal with it."
one of his online comments reacting to stories about Jason's death, calling himself "DenverDad" on kansan.com, he wrote:
"The law doesn't allow anyone under 21 to be in bars after 10 p.m., but
"YES, I made mistake of going to bar with my son the weekend before he died, the weekend I helped him move. YES, I made an error in judgment that it would be okay for Jason to be in a fraternity ...
Before his son's death, Jay Wren admitted that he knew Jason drank. In
Jay Wren said then he is against 21-year-old students and underage students living under the same roof in University housing and at fraternities.
it's OK for them to be in 'sleeping bars' called fraternities?
"I have not had a drink since the day I heard of Jason's death. Why can't fraternities change? Why can't the University change?"
While Perez doesn't draw the line at 21, he does think freshmen shouldn't live in fraternities.
"I think that's a mistake," he said.
"The Greeks know I think that, and I'm not popular with that view. The women don't allow it, and they're doing very, very well."
Regardless of Greek involvement, the underage question can get complicated for the University.
Roney said, "I am unable, as a University administrator, to design programs that focus on healthy alcohol
— and Greek liability in general: no in-house alcohol, and maybe even no in-house parties.
She used to be an officer for a sorority's corporation board, and said she would be "very, very reluctant" to serve as a corporation board officer for any house that allowed alcohol.
"From a risk management perspective, that just amazes me," Roney said.
consumption for students under 21, because if I do that, I'm encouraging people to break the law. Sometimes I feel like our hands are tied behind us because we know what's happening, but we can't really deal with it."
Perez said more national fraternities are banning house parties.
University officials have suggested one idea for Greek underage drinking
All of KU's sorority houses are dry. Most fraternity houses are not.
But only a fraternity, its corporation board, or the national fraternity has the power to change a house's alcohol rules. The University and its officials don't.
"If we had a no-party-in-house community, I'd be thrilled," he said. "I'm good with that."
AN INFLUENTIAL DEATH
Jason Wren's death shook his family, SAE, the Greek community and the University. After his death, his 16-year-old sister, Victoria, and mother, Mary, both committed suicide. The Greek community is still trying to adapt its policies. The University introduced more alcohol education and awareness. Maybe these changes will save a life. Maybe these changes aren't enough. For Jason Wren, changes don't matter.
— Edited by Lisa Curran
A 2006 study by the National College Health Assessment surveyed students from 117 colleges across the nation, including more than 1,500 KU students.
Study: KU students drink more than average American college student
...compared to the national average of 11 percent.
It found that 21 percent of KU students reported drinking five or more drinks at once, three to five times within the previous two weeks...