After each incoming member from first year and sophomore elections was assigned to one of the four committees that make up MSCG, much of last Tuesday’s Legislative Body meeting was dedicated to discussing a proposed new set of guidelines for Kagin dances.

The bill was prompted by rising concerns about rowdiness and physical and sexual violence surrounding “Kagins,” dances thrown by student organizations in the Hill ballroom of Kagin commons. Maddie Abrisi ‘14, chair of the Student Organizations Committee, presented the bill. She stressed the importance of making Kagins “safe and fun, instead of just fun.”

The bill laid out specific expectations for any organization wanting to host a Kagin, putting more responsibility on org members by asking for a specific numbers of members to be present and involved at events. These members would then have a responsibility to take action to keep the environment safe, including “report[ing] any overly intoxicated people,” “keep[ing] people off the stage to protect the DJ, band and equipment,” and “monitor[ing] dance entrances, exits, stairwells and the elevator.”

Some representatives expressed concern that these measures would put too much pressure on hosting orgs and cause discomfort among members by giving them too much responsibility. Arbisi responded by emphasizing that the most important thing was for orgs to feel confident enough to act in case something threatening or unusual happened.

“I want [Kagin] to work well, but I think we need more guidelines,” said Arbisi.

Members also raised concerns about streamlining the process of releasing Kagin-goers back into the residence halls and surrounding community. Turning lights on 15 minutes before the end of the dance to encourage students to leave was strongly suggested as a way to ensure that security guards would spend the maximum amount of time helping shut down the event before the end of their shifts.

Representatives involved in the discussion emphasized that these guidelines could be re-evaluated in the future. “If we realize this isn’t what we need, we can change it” added Audrey Kohout ’14.