Alcohol and Faculty/Staff

Problems with alcohol affect everyone on campus. Drinkers aren’t the only ones who feel the effects of their alcohol consumption; their roommates, friends, teammates, classmates, coaches, and even their teachers feel it too.

Faculty and staff members occupy important positions in the lives of students and they play a vital role in alcohol prevention efforts on college campuses. Not only do faculty and staff members educate the students, they also serve as role models in the classroom, on the campus, and in the community.

Consequences of high risk drinking:

National Level Statistics

Death: 1,700 college students between the ages of 18 and 24 die each year from alcohol-related unintentional injuries, including motor vehicle crashes (Hingson et al., 2005).
Injury: 599,000 students between the ages of 18 and 24 are unintentionally injured under the influence of alcohol (Hingson et al., 2005).
Assault: More than 696,000 students between the ages of 18 and 24 are assaulted by another student who has been drinking (Hingson et al., 2005).
Sexual Abuse: More than 97,000 students between the ages of 18 and 24 are victims of alcohol-related sexual assault or date rape (Hingson et al., 2005).
Unsafe Sex: 400,000 students between the ages of 18 and 24 had unprotected sex and more than 100,000 students between the ages of 18 and 24 report having been too intoxicated to know if they consented to having sex (Hingson et al., 2002).
Academic Problems: About 25 percent of college students report academic consequences of their drinking including missing class, falling behind, doing poorly on exams or papers, and receiving lower grades overall (Engs et al., 1996; Presley et al., 1996a, 1996b; Wechsler et al., 2002).
Health Problems/Suicide Attempts: More than 150,000 students develop an alcohol-related health problem (Hingson et al., 2002) and between 1.2 and 1.5 percent of students indicate that they tried to commit suicide within the past year due to drinking or drug use (Presley et al., 1998).
Drunk Driving: 2.1 million students between the ages of 18 and 24 drove under the influence of alcohol last year (Hingson et al., 2002).
Vandalism: About 11 percent of college student drinkers report that they have damaged property while under the influence of alcohol (Wechsler et al., 2002).
Property Damage: More than 25 percent of administrators from schools with relatively low drinking levels and over 50 percent from schools with high drinking levels say their campuses have a "moderate" or "major" problem with alcohol-related property damage (Wechsler et al., 1995).
Police Involvement: About 5 percent of 4-year college students are involved with the police or campus security as a result of their drinking (Wechsler et al., 2002) and an estimated 110,000 students between the ages of 18 and 24 are arrested for an alcohol-related violation such as public drunkenness or driving under the influence (Hingson et al., 2002).
Alcohol Abuse and Dependence: 31 percent of college students met criteria for a diagnosis of alcohol abuse and 6 percent for a diagnosis of alcohol dependence in the past 12 months, according to questionnaire-based self-reports about their drinking (Knight et al., 2002).

http://www.collegedrinkingprevention.gov/StatsSummaries/snapshot.aspx

Campus level statistics - 2006 Core Survey data

27 percent of UWEC students have peformed poorly on a test or important project as a result of drinking or drug use.
34 percent of UWEC students have missed a place as a result of drinking or drug use.
18 percent of UWEC students have been in trouble with police, residence halls, or other college authorities as a result of drinking or drug use.

How alcohol affects our campus:

The consequences of college drinking are more significant, more destructive, and more costly than many Americans realize. In addition to the damage done to student lives, these consequences affect:

The reputation of the institution
The ability to attract and retain outstanding students
The college’s academic ranking
The institution’s operating costs
Legal ramifications
The relationship of the campus with the community

The first step in addressing this problem is to recognize it for what it is—a public health issue that should be of concern.

How can faculty get involved?

Incorporate alcohol and drug prevention education into the classroom.
Serve as an important link to resources and services for students they believe are having difficulty with alcohol and other drugs. Please check out our resource page that offers both on and off campus resources.
Provide expertise needed to develop effective alcohol and drug prevention programs by participating on The Bridge: Campus-Community Coalition on Alcohol Issues in Eau Claire

How faculty can support campus efforts:

Refrain from joking. Comments in the mornings such as "sobered up yet?" this support the idea that heavy drinking is normative and OK.
Refrain from stories about your own college drinking. Many students view these types of stories as glorifying drinking and implying that all college students drink. If it is appropriate to class content, you may wish to note if alcohol negatively affected you.
Serve as a role model.
Extra credit. Give extra credit for attendance at alcohol related workshops, presentations, etc.
Other ideas. Speak out and write on the topic, do research in the area, serve on committees regarding alcohol policy, etc., promote alcohol free events. Let your colleagues know about your role in high risk drinking prevention.
Refer Students to additional resources:

Refer students for assistance - Counseling Services
Refer students to e-CHUG - an evidence-based, on-line alcohol intervention and personalized feedback tool developed by counselors and psychologists at San Diego State University.
Other resources at UWEC
Interactive sites that allow students to see blood alcohol levels and how to modify them http://www.baecdrom.org/.