CAMPUSES STEP UP ALCOHOL PROGRAMS AFTER SURVEY

St. Norbert College and the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay will
emphasize education and awareness, particularly for underclassmen, in
response to the results of a survey on student attitudes about alcohol
and illegal drug use.

"There's a lot of drinking on campus and the majority of people drink
a lot at one time," said Adrienne Brown, a senior at St. Norbert
College. "A lot of people go to the house parties where there's a lot
of alcohol."

The schools were among 128 colleges and universities nationwide that
completed the Core Alcohol and Drug Survey last spring, coordinated by
Southern Illinois University.

Out of 730 students surveyed at St Norbert College, 183 - one-fourth -
said they drink once a week and 206 - 28 percent - said they drink
three times a week. Nearly 11 percent said they used marijuana or
another illegal drug once a year, and 6 percent said they did six
times a year.

Brown, 21, said she rarely drinks because she has diabetes. She said
she never feels pressured by friends to drink.

"A lot of my friends aren't drinking as much as they did when they
were younger because they are involved in a lot things on campus,"
Brown said. "When you're older and have a lot of things going on,
drinking and socializing becomes less of a priority."

At UWGB, 87 percent of the 168 students surveyed said they consumed
alcohol in the past year and 77 percent consumed alcohol in the past
30 days.

When it comes to illegal drug use, about 17 percent of UWGB students
said they had used marijuana in the past year and 13 percent of
students used an illegal drug other than marijuana in the past year.

"The survey was given to freshmen through seniors. Many of the
participants are under the age of 21," said Judy Feld, substance abuse
coordinator at St. Norbert. "I think the survey paints a clear picture
of what alcohol usage is on the St. Norbert campus. It's going to be a
never-ending battle, like it is on any college campus."

Although the number of students surveyed represents just a portion of
the student bodies, St. Norbert and UWGB officials said the results
highlight issues that are common on college campuses.

First- and second-year students are more likely to abuse alcohol and
drugs because they are in the transitional stage of their adulthood,
said Marlene Regan, a counselor at UWGB's Counseling and Health Center.

"I think the first-year student is affected more because they are away
from home, they have this perception that you drink and you go to
class," said Priscilla Moore, a senior and public administration major
at UWGB.

"There isn't anyone there to tell them that this isn't what you do,"
said Moore, former vice president of student government at UWGB.

College officials said it's difficult to address drinking on their
campuses in a state where drinking is part of the culture.

St. Norbert College's survey results also showed that three out of
four men and two out of four women said they drank alcohol before
their first year of college.

University and college officials say such statistics are an indication
of the number of students they accept who come from Wisconsin.

School officials said alcohol and drug abuse leads to an increase in
other violent incidents including vandalism, sexual and physical
assaults and driving while intoxicated.

National figures show that about 90 percent of vandalism and assaults
involve alcohol use, Feld said.

There were 131 students referred to the Office of Student Life for
alcohol violations in 2001 compared with 136 in 2000, said Ruth
Hunter, director of communication and media relations at St. Norbert.
Depending on the severity, the incidents are referred to the police,
she said.

Last year, UWGB's public safety department issued 55 alcohol
citations, said Sue Keihn, associate provost for student services and
dean of students.

The university disciplined 146 students who were required to go to an
alcohol education program, Keihn said.

Last spring, St. Norbert created a tip line that students can call to
confidentially report incidents of vandalism.

Also, college officials meet periodically with tavern and bar owners
in De Pere to promote responsible drinking. And if college officials
learn that certain tavern and bar owners don't check IDs, they contact
the owners and the police.

St. Norbert will observe Alcohol Awareness Week in November and will
distribute yellow ribbons in memory of college students who have died
in alcohol-related incidents.

Regan said UWGB has always sponsored programs and activities that
promote awareness about alcohol/illegal drug use. In 1998, UW System
officials initiated a program to address alcohol and illegal drug use
on its campuses

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SPRING 2002 CORE ALCOHOL AND DRUG SURVEY RESULTS

St. Norbert College

730 students surveyed

Alcohol use

8.5 never used

3.3 percent used once a year

9.8 percent used six times a year

5.5 percent used once a month

11.2 percent used twice a month

25.2 percent used once a week

28.4 percent used three times a week

7.3 percent used five times a week

0.8 percent used every day

Marijuana/illegal drug use

71.1 percent never used

10.7 percent used once a year

5.7 percent used six times a year

2.6 percent used once a month

2.9 percent used twice a month

2.5 percent used once a week

1.1 percent used three times a week

1 percent used five times a week

2.4 percent used every day

University of Wisconsin-Green Bay

168 students surveyed

Alcohol use

86.9 percent used in the past year

11.9 percent didn't use in the past year

77.1 percent used in the past 30 days

74 percent of students younger than 21 used alcohol in the previous 30
days

38.9 percent of students reported binge drinking in the previous two
weeks. Binge drinking is defined as consuming five or more drinks at
one sitting. On average, students consumed 6.19 drinks during two
separate occasions.

Marijuana/Illegal Drug Use

16.7 percent used marijuana in the past year

82.7 percent didn't use any drugs (excluding tobacco and alcohol) in
the past year

10.2 percent were current marijuana users

13.1 used an illegal drug other than marijuana in the past
year

4.8 percent of students were current users of illegal drugs other than
marijuana

Most frequently reported illegal drugs used in the past 30 days were:
10 percent marijuana; 3.6 percent amphetamines and 0.6 percent
methamphetamines.

Key findings on the consequences of alcohol and drug use
include:

46.9 percent reported some form of public misconduct such as fighting,
trouble with police and vandalism at least once during the past year
as a result of drinking or drug use.

24.3 percent reported experiencing some kind of serious personal
problems such as thoughts of/or attempting suicide, being hurt or
injured sexual assault, at least once during the past year as a result
of drinking or drug use.

Results of Wisconsin public and private colleges

6,696 students surveyed

Alcohol use

776 students, or 11.7 percent, never drank

322 students, or 4.8 percent, drank once a year

600 students, or 9 percent, drank six times a year

495 students, or 7.5 percent, drank once a month

930 students, or 14 percent, drank twice a month

1,800 students, or 27.1 percent, drank once a week

1,418 students, or 21.3 percent, drank three times a
week

244 students, or 3.7 percent, drank five times a week

57 students, or 0.9 percent, drank every day.

Marijuana/Illegal drug use

65.8 percent used never used

10.4 percent used once a year

7.4 percent used 6 times a year

3.7 percent used once a month

3.7 percent used twice a month

3.1 percent used once a week

2.2 percent used 3 times a week

1.6 percent used 5 times a week

2 percent used every day