Promising Practices: Articles

Most of us know that alcohol misuse contributes to many serious preventable problems: traffic accidents, sexual harassment and date rape, peer violence, unintended pregnancies, sexually transmitted diseases, poor academic performance, and of course, the chemical-dependency syndrome of alcoholism.

Yet for many colleges, preventing student alcohol abuse is not merely on the "back burner" - it's not even "on the stove." College officials are well aware that alcohol often plays a role in many campus "cultural" traditions, such as football tailgate parties or informal initiation rites, and many have expressed concern. And although trustees, alumni, and senior administrators comprehend the problem, many are uncomfortable adopting policies and programs aimed at altering the personal behavior of students. They may (1) deny the problems exists on their campus, (2) suggest substance abuse is a public health and enforcement problem and not the responsibility of the institution, or (3) fail to understand that active institutional intervention is necessary to prevent problems - and tragedies - from occurring.

Adding to their discomfort is the legitimate debate over the institution's legal responsibility for students' personal behavior. Although students under age 21 - who constitute a majority of undergraduate college students - almost universally may not purchase alcohol (and all states have laws against underage drinking), college officials attempting to reconcile campus policies for those younger and older than 21 face real headaches.

Despite an understandable reluctance to take action, colleges and universities have steadily increased the number of policies and services specifically designed to address alcohol misuse. (Some of these initiatives also are relevant to tobacco and illicit drug use, both of which are less problematic on policy levels.)

Convinced that many campuses had instituted positive policies, programs, and strategies, we initiated a study with a grant from The Century Council, a not-for-profit organization endowed by concerned distillers, vintners, brewers, and wholesalers dedicated to fighting alcohol abuse and promoting responsible decision making about drinking. The project - "Promising Practices Campus Alcohol Strategies" - identified a wide variety of excellent campus-based initiatives.

We solicited every college and university in the country, and after conferring with professionals in national and state agencies and organizations and our own advisory panel of experts, we determined the following categories of strategies represented a comprehensive campus effort. These ten areas then served as the basis for our review process:

Awareness and Information - media campaigns, public information, large-scale events.
Environmental and Targeted approaches - programs that focus on the campus atmosphere, emphasis on specific audiences, including high-risk groups.
Curriculum - courses, lectures, lesson plans.
Peer-based Initiatives - student-led projects and peer education.
Training - programs for faculty, staff, and student leaders.
Support Services - interventions with high-risk drinkers, support groups, and counseling.
Staffing and Resources - campus professionals and interns and specialized libraries and electronic services devoted to the effort.
Policies and Implementation - policy development that links with institutional mission.
Enforcement - role of police and the campus disciplinary and judicial processes.
Assessment and Evaluation - needs assessments and quantitative and qualitative evaluations.

During the review process, hundreds of high-quality programs emerged on campuses of every type and in every region of the country. Some are quite extensive and long term; others are relatively small and short term. What's more, various campus departments and organizations are responsible for prevention efforts. For example, alcohol-abuse programs come under the auspices of the student health service at the University of California, Santa Barbara; the office of the vice president of student affairs at Saint Michael's College in Vermont; the Center for Drug and Alcohol Education at Colorado State University; and the Wellness Center at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale.

Many campuses emphasize awareness, peer-based, and environmental efforts; we received the largest number of applications in these categories. Typical awareness approaches include an alcohol-awareness day, week, or month and such alcohol-free events as "mocktail" parties, theater groups, and first-year student orientations.

For the most part, campuses are implementing only one, two, or three initiatives, and not necessarily in an integrated fashion. Campus alcohol-abuse prevention efforts should include a variety of initiatives, ideally representative of the ten categories we identified. We found outstanding examples at the University of Connecticut, Central Michigan University, Colorado State University, the State University of New York at New Paltz, the University of Texas at Austin, and Western Washington University.

The prevalence of awareness, peer, and environmental approaches mirrors the general nature of community-based approaches. Yet other emerging approaches are well suited to college and university settings - extended curricula, initiatives relating alcohol to other problems, and serious approaches to needs assessment and evaluation. For example:

Courses dealing with alcohol-related issues, curriculum infusion, lesson plans, lectures, and other course-based endeavors. The Baylor College of Dentistry includes an academic course as part of an overall programmatic emphasis on alcohol-abuse prevention.
Curricula blended with other health-oriented approaches. Gettysburg College addresses alcohol-abuse issues in a wellness course.
Initiatives illustrating the relationship between alcohol and drunk driving and between alcohol and sexual assault. Brown University requires all first-year students to attend an orientation session conducted by its Sexual Assault Peer Education Program.
Campuswide surveys on alcohol problems and outcome evaluations of programs. Dartmouth College has found a good way to evaluate campus trends and the effects of its educational programs.

Our experts, including the advisory panel and other national leaders involved in the review process, looked at the hundreds of outstanding alcohol-abuse prevention programs and compiled the following recommendations:

Alcohol-abuse prevention efforts should be well-grounded, clearly defined, and integrated into the fabric of the institution.
Programs should be comprehensive, long term, and supported by the administration and the community being served.
Campus initiatives should be broad-based, targeted to multiple constituencies, well marketed, and continually evaluated.
Staffing and resources must be adequate to accomplish the task.
Collaboration with other programs, both on and off campus, will positively affect the outcome of the prevention efforts.

Undoubtedly, your institution's mission has something to say about the intellectual development of students, and it may include statements about their personal growth. Because alcohol abuse can block personal growth and intellectual development, its control and prevention is entirely consistent with academic goals.

The success of campus alcohol-abuse programs depends on support from the top. Specific program design is not a reasonable task for boards or presidents, but campus leadership can establish a mandate, and board members can ask some key questions:


Background Information Authors and Advisory Panel About the Funder Articles Related Links	Sourcebook \| Action Planner \| Task Force Planner & Guide \| Highlights \| Publications CD
		Sobering Efforts By Gail Gleason, Ed.D. and David S. Anderson, Ph.D. Most of us know that alcohol misuse contributes to many serious preventable problems: traffic accidents, sexual harassment and date rape, peer violence, unintended pregnancies, sexually transmitted diseases, poor academic performance, and of course, the chemical-dependency syndrome of alcoholism. Yet for many colleges, preventing student alcohol abuse is not merely on the "back burner" - it's not even "on the stove." College officials are well aware that alcohol often plays a role in many campus "cultural" traditions, such as football tailgate parties or informal initiation rites, and many have expressed concern. And although trustees, alumni, and senior administrators comprehend the problem, many are uncomfortable adopting policies and programs aimed at altering the personal behavior of students. They may (1) deny the problems exists on their campus, (2) suggest substance abuse is a public health and enforcement problem and not the responsibility of the institution, or (3) fail to understand that active institutional intervention is necessary to prevent problems - and tragedies - from occurring. Adding to their discomfort is the legitimate debate over the institution's legal responsibility for students' personal behavior. Although students under age 21 - who constitute a majority of undergraduate college students - almost universally may not purchase alcohol (and all states have laws against underage drinking), college officials attempting to reconcile campus policies for those younger and older than 21 face real headaches. TAKING ACTION Despite an understandable reluctance to take action, colleges and universities have steadily increased the number of policies and services specifically designed to address alcohol misuse. (Some of these initiatives also are relevant to tobacco and illicit drug use, both of which are less problematic on policy levels.) Convinced that many campuses had instituted positive policies, programs, and strategies, we initiated a study with a grant from The Century Council, a not-for-profit organization endowed by concerned distillers, vintners, brewers, and wholesalers dedicated to fighting alcohol abuse and promoting responsible decision making about drinking. The project - "Promising Practices Campus Alcohol Strategies" - identified a wide variety of excellent campus-based initiatives. We solicited every college and university in the country, and after conferring with professionals in national and state agencies and organizations and our own advisory panel of experts, we determined the following categories of strategies represented a comprehensive campus effort. These ten areas then served as the basis for our review process: Awareness and Information - media campaigns, public information, large-scale events. Environmental and Targeted approaches - programs that focus on the campus atmosphere, emphasis on specific audiences, including high-risk groups. Curriculum - courses, lectures, lesson plans. Peer-based Initiatives - student-led projects and peer education. Training - programs for faculty, staff, and student leaders. Support Services - interventions with high-risk drinkers, support groups, and counseling. Staffing and Resources - campus professionals and interns and specialized libraries and electronic services devoted to the effort. Policies and Implementation - policy development that links with institutional mission. Enforcement - role of police and the campus disciplinary and judicial processes. Assessment and Evaluation - needs assessments and quantitative and qualitative evaluations. PROGRAM TYPES AND MODELS During the review process, hundreds of high-quality programs emerged on campuses of every type and in every region of the country. Some are quite extensive and long term; others are relatively small and short term. What's more, various campus departments and organizations are responsible for prevention efforts. For example, alcohol-abuse programs come under the auspices of the student health service at the University of California, Santa Barbara; the office of the vice president of student affairs at Saint Michael's College in Vermont; the Center for Drug and Alcohol Education at Colorado State University; and the Wellness Center at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale. Many campuses emphasize awareness, peer-based, and environmental efforts; we received the largest number of applications in these categories. Typical awareness approaches include an alcohol-awareness day, week, or month and such alcohol-free events as "mocktail" parties, theater groups, and first-year student orientations. For the most part, campuses are implementing only one, two, or three initiatives, and not necessarily in an integrated fashion. Campus alcohol-abuse prevention efforts should include a variety of initiatives, ideally representative of the ten categories we identified. We found outstanding examples at the University of Connecticut, Central Michigan University, Colorado State University, the State University of New York at New Paltz, the University of Texas at Austin, and Western Washington University. EMERGING TRENDS The prevalence of awareness, peer, and environmental approaches mirrors the general nature of community-based approaches. Yet other emerging approaches are well suited to college and university settings - extended curricula, initiatives relating alcohol to other problems, and serious approaches to needs assessment and evaluation. For example: Courses dealing with alcohol-related issues, curriculum infusion, lesson plans, lectures, and other course-based endeavors. The Baylor College of Dentistry includes an academic course as part of an overall programmatic emphasis on alcohol-abuse prevention. Curricula blended with other health-oriented approaches. Gettysburg College addresses alcohol-abuse issues in a wellness course. Initiatives illustrating the relationship between alcohol and drunk driving and between alcohol and sexual assault. Brown University requires all first-year students to attend an orientation session conducted by its Sexual Assault Peer Education Program. Campuswide surveys on alcohol problems and outcome evaluations of programs. Dartmouth College has found a good way to evaluate campus trends and the effects of its educational programs. RECOMMENDATIONS FOR PROGRAMS Our experts, including the advisory panel and other national leaders involved in the review process, looked at the hundreds of outstanding alcohol-abuse prevention programs and compiled the following recommendations: Alcohol-abuse prevention efforts should be well-grounded, clearly defined, and integrated into the fabric of the institution. Programs should be comprehensive, long term, and supported by the administration and the community being served. Campus initiatives should be broad-based, targeted to multiple constituencies, well marketed, and continually evaluated. Staffing and resources must be adequate to accomplish the task. Collaboration with other programs, both on and off campus, will positively affect the outcome of the prevention efforts. RECOMMENDATIONS FOR TRUSTEES Undoubtedly, your institution's mission has something to say about the intellectual development of students, and it may include statements about their personal growth. Because alcohol abuse can block personal growth and intellectual development, its control and prevention is entirely consistent with academic goals. The success of campus alcohol-abuse programs depends on support from the top. Specific program design is not a reasonable task for boards or presidents, but campus leadership can establish a mandate, and board members can ask some key questions: When was the last honest review of campus alcohol-abuse prevention efforts? As students change, campus practices must evolve. The board can encourage staff to conduct an honest assessment of student knowledge levels, attitudes, alcohol-use patterns, and the consequences of their alcohol use. In addition, board members may take advantage of opportunities to interact with students to gain a sense of reality. The board also can review the perceptions of faculty and staff members, ensure that records of alcohol-related incidents are kept centrally, and assess current campus services to determine their effectiveness and appropriateness. Is a comprehensive alcohol policy in place for the campus community? If so, is it supported by staff, alumni, faculty, and students? Is is appropriate for an institutional philosophy and related policies to be developed collaboratively and disseminated to faculty, staff, students, and their parents. It also is appropriate to solicit support for alcohol-abuse prevention efforts from alumni and to ask alumni to become sensitive to their behavior at campus events; it is important to "deglamorize" intoxication. Is there a reasonable plan to address current and future needs? Campus personnel should be encouraged to design a plan to minimize alcohol-related problems. The plan should be proactive; that is, it should not simply respond to the next tragedy. It should be reasonable, realistic, and attend to difficult issues, such as prohibition of underage alcohol use and risk reduction in drinking practices. It should clearly state desired outcomes and meaningful measures of success, such as a decline in the number of alcohol-related injuries in relation to the number of students who have participated in campus educational activities. Evaluation of current and future efforts should be an essential element of all programs. Are current resources adequate? A commitment to healthy behavior implies the commitment of necessary external and internal resources - both funds and labor. As influential civic leaders, trustees can act as advocates for greater attention and resources for campus initiatives from local, state, and federal sources. Internally, college leadership can insist on a clear chain of responsibility for alcohol-abuse prevention activities and can back up this mandate with adequate personnel, funds, and authority. Are existing resources being used well? Look at opportunities for borrowing, sharing, and collaborating. Make sure that city and county resources are linked to campus strategies. Closer to home, you may uncover previously hidden resources on your campus - the athletic department, a service-learning project, a dedicated faculty member, perhaps parents or an alumni group. These "sleeping giants" can be encouraged to provide support, services, or other momentum for your campus. Additionally, board members can support campus collaboration, mandate integration of substance abuse programming across departments, and ensure that assistance programs are available to students and staff who are experiencing difficulty with their own family use of alcohol. Education, prevention, and referral to treatment should not be isolated activities. Trustees can play an important role in changing the campus climate. After all, alcohol abuse is preventable; however, success requires concerted effort from all parts of the campus community. Minimizing alcohol misuse and making our campuses healthy and safe living and learning communities are important and tangible goals, reachable through efforts such as those highlighted in "Promising Practices." With appropriate trustee vision and presidential leadership, we all can look forward to healthy and productive campus environments. Gail Gleason Milgram and David S. Anderson co-directed the "Promising Practices: Campus Alcohol Strategies" project. Gail Gleason Milgram is professor and director of education and training at the Center of Alcohol Studies at Rutgers University in New Jersey. David S. Anderson is an associate professor at George Mason University in Virginia. They co-direct the "Promising Practices: Campus Alcohol Strategies" project. David S. Anderson, Ph.D. is an Associate Professor at George Mason University's Center for the Advancement of Public Health. Promising Practices: Campus Alcohol Strategies is based at George Mason University in Fairfax, VA. Project Co-Directors are GMU's Dr. Anderson and Gail Gleason Milgram, Ed.D. of the Center of Alcohol Studies, Rutgers University. Funded by a grant from The Century Council, Promising Practices: Campus Alcohol Strategies hosts a web site at http://www.promprac.gmu.edu; project staff can be contacted at 703-993-3697 or caph@gmu.edu.


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