“The students were most responsive to the Booze It or Lose It van because it provided hands-on activities, such as driving the golf carts with beer goggles on that distort your vision as if you’ve been drinking,” said Kelly Rhodes, intern in campus ministry. “To my surprise, a lot of the students asked about the “1700 shirts” we wore that reflected the statistic that 1,700 college students die each year from alcohol-related injuries.”
Another successful event was hosted by Residence Life. Each dorm was asked to provide one program focusing on alcohol awareness. In one program, students received a ticket with a number of drinks or designated driver on it. The number represented the number of drinks they could have, depending on size, age, etc., responsibly. As they visited the simulated bar in between rounds of Wii and Rock Band the bartender tallied the drinks on their cards throughout the night. At the end of the program, they assessed what the numbers meant and reinforced the idea of responsibility in situations where peer pressure is strong.
“Everyone is aware of alcohol, especially in college,” said Rhodes. “The thing a lot of people don’t think about is that the ‘recreational use’ of alcohol can have lasting effects. We wanted to help educate students about the effects of alcohol at their age and help them think critically about their decision making when it comes to drinking. We hope that our students will always choose responsibility when they are faced with decisions about alcohol use – not just while they’re in college but even after they leave our campus.”
With the success of the event, Student Life hopes to make Alcohol Awareness week an annual event.
Photo copy- Athletes, residence life staffers and other students worked together to make the dance party in Carter gym a success. From left to right: Melissa Psaltis, Libby Sanderson, Sandramarie Hoots and Caitlin Hall.