Off to college, but not to party

In the aftermath of alcohol-related tragedies -- in which intoxicated students have died in fires, been hit by trains or killed in auto accidents -- colleges have taken bolder steps to stop binge and underage drinking.

Many have raised penalties, but some are combining that step with a more subtle, less directive approach. They're offering students a chance to choose to live in substance-free dorms. The students must sign a contract that they will not bring drugs or alcohol into their residence halls.

It's a smart, proactive approach, not only because it has high parent-appeal or even because it gives students who don't want to use alcohol an option. It's a chance for students themselves to make a statement about their preferences on campus life, and what they see college being about. Some students are as sick of falling-down-drunk young people as college administrators and townspeople are. They don't care to contribute to what's become, at some schools, a stereotype of college behavior that they find insulting.

At some colleges, these dorms are filling up as quickly as they're opened.

It's a good option.