Surveys show major progress made in reducing high-risk drinking among students

John Bishop, UD associate vice president for counseling and student development

2:47 p.m., Jan. 6, 2004--UD officials are extremely encouraged by the results of the most recent Harvard School of Public Health survey concerning high-risk drinking on campus, which shows significant declines in destructive behaviors by students.

John Bishop, UD associate vice president for counseling and student development, addresses questions related to the issue.

Q: What is the University doing to curb excessive drinking among students?

A: Since 1996, the University of Delaware and the City of Newark have been in the forefront nationally in addressing issues related to high-risk drinking among college students. Those efforts have been supported by two grants from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and have resulted in the formation of a volunteer organization of community residents and students, faculty and staff, known as the Building Responsibility Coalition. This coalition has grown to involve more than 130 individuals and has been an important influence both on the campus and in the community.

The efforts in Newark and on the University of Delaware campus have centered on presenting the concerns about the excessive use of alcohol as a public health issue. Solving any public health problem is dependent on changing the environment that permits, encourages or sustains the problem. In our setting, we see the negative secondhand effects of high-risk drinking as the major issue and believe that our campus and town should be protected from the violence, vandalism and disturbances of the peace that are associated with the excessive or illegal use of alcohol. That approach seems to make commonsense to most people, including students.

Q: Was it difficult to make headway at first?

A: There was no shortage of skeptics when this project began. Many naysayers felt that trying to change a college culture in which high-risk drinking was not only acceptable but often glamorized would likely be met with failure. While that reaction was understandable, both University and City officials recognized how undesirable it was to have a “party school” reputation smear the more positive attributes of both the school and the town.

Q: How do you measure progress at UD?

A: The Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) has polled students at the University of Delaware since 1993 as a part of its national survey of 140 colleges and universities. The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation mandates an annual program of evaluation to measure effectiveness, allowing the HSPH to see changes that have occurred on our campus over several years.

And, in general, the latest news is really quite good.

The data we recently received from the HSPH clearly show several encouraging trends:

Students are drinking alcohol more moderately;
Drinking alcohol with the express purpose of getting drunk has decreased;
Fewer students report having hangovers, missing classes, doing something that they later regret, arguing with friends, engaging in unplanned sexual activity and damaging personal property; and
Fewer students also report getting hurt or injured in alcohol-related incidents.

Likewise, the Harvard data confirm the corollary to those statistics involving the “secondhand” harms related to the alcohol culture: Fewer students report being bothered by the bad behaviors of those who have had too much to drink. We’ve also seen a decrease in incidents in which students have been insulted by others, became involved in a serious argument or quarrel, been hit or assaulted, had personal property damaged, had their sleep or study interrupted, been asked to or expected to “babysit” a drunken friend or experienced an unwanted sexual advance.

Q: How do UD students feel about these changes?

A: The overwhelming majority of students at the University of Delaware believe that the alcohol policies are seriously enforced on campus and tell us that they are more aware of:

The penalties for breaking the rules;
Where to get help for alcohol-related problems;
How to recognize when someone has a drinking problem;
The long-term effects of heavy drinking; and
The dangers of alcohol overdose.

Q: What factors have led to these changes in the University community?
A: The positive changes we see at the University of Delaware may be due to a variety of factors and that is, in many ways, the remarkable part of this story. The record number of applicants the University has been attracting is more likely drawn to the impressive academic merits of the institution than to any “party school” reputation it may have had in the past. It is not unreasonable to suggest that more academically minded students might subsequently engage in more responsible and respectful behaviors.

Credit also must be given to the leadership of the president of the University, Dr. David P. Roselle, and to the city officials in Newark who have supported needed public policy changes. Student organizations on campus also have been important contributors to the efforts to change the culture around the use of alcohol, and the University is making strong efforts to emphasize to students that they must be good citizens of the Newark community.

Q: What roles have the city and citizens of Newark played?

A: It is important to recognize how the environment around the campus has changed in a positive way. Seven years ago, “happy hours” dominated the business district, with discounted price alcohol specials being available on Main Street from Monday morning until closing times on Sunday night; beer could be bought for as little as a quarter per draft; and some establishments were clearly functioning as saloons under the pretense of being restaurants. It is a great credit to the City Council and the Mayor’s Alcohol Commission that new ordinances have been put in place to address such practices. Some claim that these measures have been “anti-business,” but the truth is that residents and visitors now enjoy a greater variety of good places to dine and drink than ever before. Most local business owners have been supportive and understanding of the efforts to make Newark an appropriate home for those who are associated with the University and those who want to enjoy the ambiance of a vibrant college town.

While acknowledging that there is more to do, it is important to recognize that the University of Delaware and the city of Newark have been engaged in one of the most successful efforts in the country to address the problems associated with the high-risk use of alcohol among college students. The level of cooperation among the University, city officials and members of the community on this project has done much to change the culture about the use of alcohol and such environmental changes are having a positive influence on the behaviors, attitudes and experiences of those who live here.

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