{"id":745,"date":"2022-04-10T13:26:57","date_gmt":"2022-04-10T17:26:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/vest\/?p=745"},"modified":"2026-05-08T13:29:18","modified_gmt":"2026-05-08T17:29:18","slug":"well-house-builds-student-community-around-substance-free-living","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/vest\/2022\/04\/10\/well-house-builds-student-community-around-substance-free-living\/","title":{"rendered":"Well House builds student community around substance-free living"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"The<\/p>\n

The Well House, one of Stanford’s theme housing options in the preassignment round. (Photo: LEXI KUPOR\/The Stanford Daily)<\/em><\/p>\n

By\u00a0<\/span>Lexi Kupor<\/a><\/p>\n

Nestled on the edge of Mayfield Avenue in Robert Moore North,\u00a0<\/span>The Well House<\/a>\u00a0(The Well) made its debut last fall as the first consolidated\u00a0<\/span>substance-free housing<\/a>\u00a0option for students. The house, which hosts 51 undergraduates and two Resident Fellows (RFs), provides a community for students committed to living in and actively contributing to an environment free from drug and alcohol use.<\/span><\/p>\n

A\u00a02019 campus survey of undergraduate students\u00a0<\/span>found<\/a>\u00a0that 36% of respondents reported engaging in binge drinking one or more times during the two weeks prior to the survey. Despite changes to Stanford\u2019s alcohol and drug\u00a0<\/span>policy<\/a>, issues with substance use and abuse on campus remain. Ten undergraduate students were\u00a0<\/span>transported<\/a>\u00a0to Stanford Hospital for alcohol poisoning in September, and co-directors of Stanford\u2019s 5-SURE on Foot program published a December\u00a0<\/span>op-ed<\/a>\u00a0about student alcohol use on campus, writing that \u201cthis quarter, we have watched unhealthy behaviors toward alcohol increase rapidly and frighteningly.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

While some students opt to live at The Well due to personal or familial histories of substance abuse, religious obligations or athletic commitments, others said they simply prefer the welcoming community and lack of substance use within the residence.<\/p>\n

The Well is \u201cnot just a recovery house,\u201d said Corey Lamb \u201922, a member of the Stanford\u00a0<\/span>Cardinal Recovery<\/a>\u00a0<\/span>Community Advisory Board. Rather, he described it as a space that values inclusion and hosts regular trips, events and educational programs for residents. He added that the \u201cwelcoming and homey\u201d environment that has formed throughout The Well\u2019s first year allows for the Stanford recovery community to grow closer to one another.<\/p>\n

Dorm events, many of which are planned by residents, have included amusement park trips, a house prom and a Super Bowl party, according to Lamb. While some programs, such as the\u00a0midnight mocktail night, draw attention to the intrinsically substance-free house culture, others, such as the interactive petting zoo, are recreational activities that do not generally involve substance use even outside of the residence. The dorm also hosts educational programs about topics such as best practices when living with housemates in recovery from substance abuse disorders and conversations surrounding suicide prevention awareness, according to Well House Resident Fellow Noel Vest.<\/p>\n

Noel, a psychiatry instructor at the Stanford School of Medicine, serves as an inaugural Well House RF alongside his wife Ryelee Vest, who also works as a program coordinator for the National Institute of Drug Abuse Clinical Trials Network.<\/p>\n

Noel, who identifies as an individual in recovery from a substance use disorder, said he hopes that The Well helps substance-free communities feel like they \u201cmatter on campus as well\u201d and deserve recreational events and desirable housing, even if they do not partake in the supposed \u201cnorm\u201d of consuming alcohol or drugs during college. Residents also take part in the process of learning \u201cwhat it takes to be a good neighbor\u201d for those in recovery, he said, emphasizing that \u201ceverybody plays a part in our response to the addiction crisis\u201d no matter their personal choices related to substance use.<\/p>\n

Ellie Fajer \u201923, who pre-assigned to The Well hoping to find a welcoming community following a year of virtual learning, found that the house\u2019s values align well with her personal preferences. Residents consistently \u201csupport you and cheer you on,\u201d contributing to a \u201ccohesive environment\u201d despite their different motivations for choosing The Well, Fajer said.<\/p>\n

Students interested in living at The Well for its second year on campus can apply via the pre-assignment process. Noel said he hopes that the residence and its ideals are \u201csomething that will outlast [him] at Stanford.\u201d He encouraged each member of the Stanford community to play a role in promoting safe environments for students affected by substance use disorders or those who prefer to partake in substance-free environments.<\/p>\n

\u201cAddiction affects us all,\u201d he said.<\/span><\/p>\n

Originally published April 10, 2022 in The Stanford Daily<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Well House, one of Stanford’s theme housing options in the preassignment round. (Photo: LEXI KUPOR\/The Stanford Daily) By\u00a0Lexi Kupor Nestled on the edge of Mayfield Avenue in Robert Moore North,\u00a0The Well House\u00a0(The Well) made its debut last fall as the first consolidated\u00a0substance-free housing\u00a0option for students. The house, which hosts 51 undergraduates and two Resident […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24655,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/vest\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/745"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/vest\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/vest\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/vest\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/24655"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/vest\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=745"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/vest\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/745\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":746,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/vest\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/745\/revisions\/746"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/vest\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=745"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/vest\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=745"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/vest\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=745"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}