Student Council Passes Day Student Driving Policy
Student Council passed at its most recent meeting a proposal that would allow upperclassmen day students who had completed proper protocol to drive boarding students. The Council would like to present the proposal to faculty members this year, although according to Dean of Faculty Ellen Wolff, the faculty meeting agenda has little room for any additions.
Uppers Tara Weil, Jeremy Xu, Mark Blekherman and senior Dara Okeremi have spearheaded the year-long endeavor to pass the proposal. In the policy’s current form, as stated in the E-Book, day students under 18 years old are prohibited from driving boarding students.
“I’ve been able to get my parents to drive me and my friends places, but it can be pretty difficult to organize,” [Gavin Sabalewski] said.
Per the new policy, both the day and boarding students must obtain permission from a guardian and dean—similar to the Academy’s out-of-town system—before the day student drives the boarder if they are to leave the ten-mile radius surrounding Exeter.
However, boarders planning to ride only within the towns of Exeter or Stratham in a day student’s car do not need to ask permission from their guardians or a dean. Boarding students’ guardians can create a list of day students the boarder can drive with, and will then not have to fill out a form for each event.
The push to instate a new day student driving policy came about for several reasons. According to upper and day student representative Natalie Pang, it is inconvenient for boarders to rely on day students’ guardians for transportation.
Upper and day student Gavin Sabalewski explained that even with the freedom to make arrangements with guardians and boarding friends, the system is still not optimal. “I’ve been able to get my parents to drive me and my friends places, but it can be pretty difficult to organize,” he said.
Sabalewski also mentioned that Exonians frequently break the rules pertaining to driving and, in doing so, put themselves at risk. “It causes people to have to pick people up in off-campus locations,” he said.
Lower Tatum Schutt believes that the current policy is “largely unnecessary” and harmful to Exonians on financial aid. “If you cannot pay for transportation like the rest of your friends for a simple beach outing, it can be very isolating,” she said.
However, lower Rosemary Beck, who is legally old enough to drive, said that she understands the restriction. “I can see why they wouldn’t want me driving around preps,” she said. “I know some parents would be worried if their kids had the ability to just hop in someone’s car.”
Beck does believe the new policy would be beneficial, however, as long as the drivers’ records show they are safe and skilled drivers.
Despite the positive response the policy draft has received, many still believe it could be improved. Upper Elliot Diaz would like to see the policy extend to all towns that neighbor Exeter, as opposed to just Stratham. “It would be much more convenient for me,” they said.
Pang also believes that the policy is not as convenient as it could be, as the lengthy permission process might not be worth it for a short trip close to campus.
However, senior and day student Chris Balboni believes that “the parental permission is an important part of it because the school can’t be liable for people driving.” Instructor in Mathematics and Student Council advisor Laura Marshall agreed, explaining that “the accident rate of teenage drivers is high and [Exeter is] responsible for the safety of students.”
Regardless, Pang is hopeful that the Student Council proposal will continue to materialize and improve. She said, “There are bound to be things that will be changed in the future.” Despite this, Pang added, “I think the policy is a really good start.”