Dealing With Student Drinking

Drinking and college seem to go hand-in-hand. Whether or not this is necessarily a good connection depends on the mindset of the individual. However, as much as universities, parents, and students may try to deny the fact that alcohol is actually a common weekend (or weekday for the bolder student) beverage of choice amongst the student body, the fact remains: many college students drink. This can unfortunately lead to alcohol-related issues, such as health issues and safety issues, as well as the legal issues that accompany underage drinking. Schools are now finding different ways to crack down on student drinking in an attempt to remedy some of those problems.

College alcohol consumption has been on the forefront of university concern for years. One reason that schools are so strict about underage drinking, which can occur in freshman dorms or college parties, is simply because it is illegal for individuals under the age of 21 to possess and imbibe alcohol. For the same reason why colleges must punish individuals who perpetrate crimes such as theft, they must also punish individuals who illegally drink. Another reason why alcohol is not tolerated on campuses is because of the dangers associated with irresponsible drinking. During the 2000-05 period, a whopping 20 percent of all freshman deaths were related to alcohol, according to Prof. David J. Hanson of the State University of New York at Potsdam. Students who regularly binge drink are also more likely to develop alcoholism, an addiction that could severely damage a student’s health, academic performance, social life, and career opportunities.

Some universities have a strict no-alcohol policy. Virginia Tech is one such school and their regulations require that school officials contact the parents or guardians of all underage students caught buying, possessing, or drinking alcohol. It is believed that many students fear the retribution of their parents more than a day in jail or fine, which explains why the school would rather send the student back to his or her dorm and contact the parents rather than call the police to issue the student a fine. Other schools like Texas Tech are approaching the student drinking scene in a different way, preferring to just make sure that students who drink stay safe rather than simply punishing them. Texas Tech offers its students free cab rides back to campus during late nights and early mornings without any questions asked. This way, intoxicated students will be more willing to safely take a cab home rather than attempt driving drunk.

This entry was posted on Saturday, June 12th, 2010 at 7:52 am and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.