Hall of Shame:JHU

2005.1 -- Prank Calls

At JHU Session 1 2005, there was a doofus who was prank calling Clark AMR 2 dorm at 2:00 a.m., pretending to be the pizza guy, insurance company, et cetera. Two roommates pretended to be KGB operatives to the prank caller(s) and the calls ended.

2006.1, 2006.2 -- Cross-Dressing Deemed Offensive

At JHU 2006 Session 1 and 2, cross dressing day was canceled by the administration (Edit: AMY) because it was allegedly "offensive" to "real cross-dressers" and homosexuals. A few CTYers attempted to cross dress, but were sent back into their dorms during breakfast to change. Despite the ethics class' attempt to reschedule Cross-dressing Day on a later date through a petition and the administration's supposed consent, no cross dressing day ever took place. This has been called a CTY SIN. As of 2007 additional reasons for banning drag day have been provided. According to the RPA, a father of one of the feamle CTYers showed up, saw his daughter walking around in boys clothes, got the completely wrong idea and threatened to take her out of the program before someone explained to him what was going on. In addition, parents of male CTYers were none too pleased to see their sons walking around in miniskirts. Unfortunately, due to these few closed minded individuals, this activity has been banned. It seems like the JHU administration is more easily swayed by parental complaints than other sites as many of the evens on this list were inspired by parents.

2006.1 -- Alcohol Found in Boys' Dorms

At JHU 2006 Session 1, over $1000 worth of empty alcoholic drink bottles were found above the ceiling tiles. The alcohol was apparently left over from previous residents. Although nobody was responsible for this, the dorms were still searched.

Max Koren's update: I was there session 2 in 2005, and saw the bottles there because I was hiding someone's shoes in the ceiling. I guess I didn't care because I didn't tell anyone. Not on purpose, I just didn't think it was very important or whatever.

2006.1--Metro Weekly

The Youth+Service girls of JHU 06 Session 1, on one of their many field trips, picked up a free copy of Metro Weekly, Baltimore's GLBT magazine, without the knowledge of instructor Tre. Upon further examination in line for lunch (that you had to wait in forever because of the meal cards), they found a provocative ad for an "All Male, All Nude" gay cowboy calendar.

They proceeded to cut out the pictures and displayed them not-so-discreetly on their lanyards.

No admin confrontation resulted, but cries of disbelief were heard from both their RA and TA, as well as other students.

2007.1--Additional Study Hall Added

At JHU 2007 Session 1, a single parent complained that their child didn't have a full day of class on the last Thursday. So, the CTY staff decided to add an additional study hall from 3:15 to 5:15 on the last Thursday in place of activities. They failed to mention this adjustment to the teachers until they had made all their lesson plans, so most classes ended up watching a vaguely class related movie. This policy carried over to second session as well.

Elliah's update: Oh yes, I remember this. We (crafting the essay C) watched the Princess Bride as our T.A (Leigh, LT for Carlisle kids) just yelled at the admins on the phone. They shortened the dance as well, that's important to note. The dance was only hours, rather than two hours 45 min.

2007.2--No More Sleepovers

At JHU 2007 Session 2, sleepovers were banned due to conflicting policies. JHU policy bans moving mattresses, while CTY policy bans students from sleeping on anything but their own mattress. People slept over anyways. It is unclear how many people actually slept over, but it is fairly certain that illegal sleepovers occurred in just about every hall. Only the final Saturday evening were students actually busted by RAs for sleeping-over.

For more information on surviving illegal sleepovers without getting caught, see here.

2007.2--Devin's Hall Gets Pwned!

Jesse's Hall, Pasha's Hall, Devin's Hall, you know what I'm talking about! Devin's Hall challenged Jesse's Hall to a football game; at stake was a hoard of CTY bills valid for the auction. The losing team, Devin's Hall, refused to pay up.

What followed was all-out pwnage of Devin's Hall during the following Social Time. First came the pieing. Jesse's Hall, the Czak Republic, gathered whipped cream into dozens of styrofoam plates. With the help of a sympathetic Pasha's Hall, RA and SRA approval, warfare commenced in the courtyard outside Devin's Hall, with Pasha and Jesse's fighters springing out from the doors and surrounding the members of Devin's team (who were also there with pies). Devin was hit in the face and stomach, as were many members of his hall. Almost all of the CTYers out for Social Time gathered to watch Devin's humiliation. Pasha and Jesse triumphed, victors over the defeated Devin.

But the war was not yet over. A treaty, mediated by SRA Jim, was drawn up, but Pasha's Hall had one more trick to pull. Pasha and his hall had bought the Mystery Prize #2 at the CTY auction, which turned out to be an extra 30 minutes before lights out. At exactly 10:42 PM, Pasha's Hall, all dressed in black to mimic ninja garb, snuck into neighboring Devin's Hall with a hoard of toilet paper and duct tape. First, one brave member ventured forth to put duct tape over all the peepholes. Then, the TPing commenced; toilet paper was strung all over the doors, doorknobs, walls, and ceilings. Pictures were taken and sent to Devin's Hall the next day, because JHU policy would not allow the evidence to sit overnight. Pasha and his troupe returned to their hall, brimming with the sweet feeling of victory.