WHEATON, Ill. — Wheaton College, an evangelical school in Wheaton, Ill., will allow dancing and permit faculty to drink alcohol and use tobacco products off campus according to its new “community covenant.”
“On-campus dances will take place only with official college sponsorship,” according to the covenant approved in mid-February. “All members of the Wheaton College community will take care to avoid any entertainment or behavior, on or off campus, which may be immodest, sinfully erotic or harmfully violent.”
The college included the new language in a list of “frequently asked questions” that accompanies the covenant and is posted on its Web site.
“First, for not a few of our students, dancing was a significant part of their lives before they came to Wheaton, even though they come from strong Christian backgrounds,” the college said. “Across the country the evangelical world is today very mixed on this issue.”
It noted it has held “innocent and wholesome” dances, such as square dances, since the 1970s.
The change in alcohol policy was the result of a research committee's evaluation of a 1991 state law that prohibits discrimination against an employee who uses “lawful products,” such as alcoholic beverages and tobacco products, during nonworking hours as long as they do not impair job performance.
College functions will remain alcohol-free and tobacco-free, according to the new covenant, and undergraduates are required to refrain from the use of such products.
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