|
October 20, 1999
Modisett, Purdue announce new program
to fight alcohol abuse
Sources: Jeff Modisett, (317) 232-6351
Nancy Maylath, (765) 494-9559;
nmaylath@purdue.edu
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Indiana Attorney General Jeff Modisett today (Wednesday, 10/20) announced his support for a new alcohol education program to be used at Purdue University and other colleges and universities across the state.
Modisett and Purdue student wellness Director Nancy Maylath announced during National Collegiate Alcohol Awareness Week that Purdue will be the among the first colleges in Indiana to use Training for Intervention Procedures. The program is being made available to all state-supported institutions of higher education in Indiana.
Training for Intervention Procedures is designed to teach servers, sellers and consumers of alcohol how to prevent intoxication, drunken driving and underage drinking. Eight versions of the program address concerns specific to different groups. All sessions are taught by certified trainers, using video and printed materials to facilitate discussion of the course content.
There are three components to the collegiate curriculum: information about how alcohol affects the body and the legal liabilities associated with the consumption of alcohol; skills-training to recognize signs of intoxication and prevent alcohol misuse; and a practice session to build confidence for using these skills.
"Underage drinking occurs on college campuses across America, and so do the problems that go with it: deaths, accidents, injuries and sexual assault," Modisett said. "That is why Purdue's and other schools' efforts to reduce underage drinking are so important. If we are to provide students with a safe and secure environment, students must be given the tools they need to prevent underage drinking and impaired driving."
The new program will supplement Purdue's existing alcohol education programs which have featured Alcohol 101, an interactive CD program developed by the Century Council and the University of Illinois. Alcohol 101 has been used very effectively at Purdue over the past year, said John C. Lawn, chairman of the Century Council and former director of the Drug Enforcement Administration.
The Alcohol 101 program is grounded in educational principles designed to help students maintain safety and control in situations involving alcohol – with a particular focus on the problems of unsafe or regretted sex, alcohol overdose and drunk driving, Lawn said. The program has been used at more than 600 campuses nationwide.
Alcohol 101 provides information that targets students' expectations, knowledge and beliefs about alcohol use and misuse. It includes life skills-training, with a primary focus on communication and assertiveness skills; information on how to recognize and intervene when other students – particularly friends – place themselves at risk; and norm-setting, which seeks to correct erroneous impressions about prevalence and acceptance of excessive drinking among peers.
Launched in May 1991, the Century Council is a national, not-for-profit organization dedicated to reducing drunk driving and underage drinking problems. The organization is funded by America's leading distillers.
"Alcohol abuse is a problem at all colleges," Maylath said, "one that Purdue is trying to address on a variety of fronts. We have the education programs coordinated by Purdue's student wellness center and used by campus fraternities, sororities, residence halls and student orientation programs. The information also makes its way into academic programs and into seminars conducted by intercollegiate athletics."
In addition to the national education program, Purdue has address alcohol abuse on numerous fronts:
• The student wellness office has developed local programs – Alcohol Jeopardy, Binge Drinking Blowout and Driving the Distance – that peer educators present to student organizations, fraternities, sororities and residence halls.
• The Interfraternity Council and Panhellenic Associations have set new rules designed to prevent underage alcohol consumption at Greek functions.
• Six Purdue fraternities and all the sororities have substance-free housing. Other groups are planning to go substance-free.
• Purdue Police are using a donated Pontiac Firebird TransAm to attract impromptu crowds for alcohol education seminars as part of the department's community policing program.
• Alcohol education is included in student orientation programs, classes in the School of Liberal Arts and "Life Skills" classes in Intercollegiate Athletics.
• Major alcohol-free activities were conducted during Grand Prix and Notre Dame football weekends.
Writer: J. Michael Willis, (765) 494-0371;
jwillis1@purdue.edu
Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; purduenews@purdue.edu
Other sources: John C. Lawn, Century Council, (202) 661-4701
Rich Schneider, Indiana Attorney General Office, (317) 232-6351
Jay Morgan, Century Council, (404) 262-0888
To the Purdue News and Photos Page
|
Purdue News
