While the University has dispensed hand-sanitizing stations across campus, students have also taken decisive action to protect our community against swine flu. This has been most encouraging. The incredibly vast and readily available information distributed by the University to the student body has no doubt influenced the behaviors and actions of individual students and groups. But the most notable gesture in the ongoing battle to contain the virus was the Interfraternity Council’s decision to place a moratorium on open parties.

We applaud the IFC’s ban on open parties not solely for the cases of swine flu it might prevent, but for the proactive message it sent to the student body on social etiquette. While parties and other types of high-risk flu-spreading situations will inevitably continue to occur elsewhere on and off campus, the decision to pass this moratorium sent an important message to the community: In times of such pandemic, we must reconsider our traditional behaviors and adapt to the circumstances that surround us.

The general dialogue about H1N1, spurred first by the University’s wide-reaching communication and later by the IFC’s moratorium, is healthy and constructive for students. Regardless of a Greek affiliation, campus-wide discussion regarding the prevention of swine flu has led students to reevaluate otherwise overlooked issues such as sharing cups, checking e-mail on a library computer or shaking hands with a potential employer at the Career Fair.

We are happy to see that the administration has left action up to students. On their own, the fraternities took into consideration the information provided by the University, acknowledged their potential influence on the spread of swine flu and made a decision to hamper their own enjoyment for the welfare of their peers. We hope that other student groups will similarly evaluate their impact on the spread of swine flu and hold themselves accountable to broaden awareness.

The battle against H1N1 is far from over. The risk of spreading disease will remain and we cannot anticipate what future measures will need to be put into place. It is therefore important that we recognize the efforts made by organizations within the student body and the administration, which have taken constructive and responsible steps to keep our campus healthy.