LEHIGH U. STUDENTS SAY NEW ALCOHOL POLICY
ENCOURAGES USE OF OTHER DRUGS

Students at Lehigh University are protesting a new alcohol policy that
they say dampens spirit on the campus and leads to the abuse of other
drugs, like ecstasy.

About 140 students rallied on Saturday and circulated a petition that
demands changes in the university's Project IMPACT, which stands for
Involving Multiple Partners in Achieving a Cultural Transformation.
Designed to discourage binge drinking, the policy still allows
legal-age drinking on the campus, but regulates the amount of alcohol
at campus parties and requires that two university staff members
monitor social events where alcohol is served.

"I'm 21, so off campus I'm legally allowed to drink," says Jonathan
Rausch, a senior and chairman of the Campus Improvements Committee,
which serves as a liaison between the student body and student
leaders. "But if I want to drink on campus there's a limitation to
what I can do. That's absurd."

Mr. Rausch said that because the new policy limits alcohol
consumption, students are more likely to consume drugs at the
chaperoned parties, because such substances are difficult to detect.

At the protest, some students wore shirts that said: "I do drugs at
Lehigh 'cause I can't drink."

John W. Smeaton, vice-provost of students affairs, said that he was
willing to meet with students this week and that he would consider
revising the new policy. But he stressed that Lehigh would not stray
from its long-term goal of curbing binge drinking. Mr. Smeaton said
Project IMPACT's aim was to promote responsible drinking, not to ban
alcohol at the private university, which is located in Bethlehem, Pa.

"This is not a crackdown," Mr. Smeaton said. "We are simply trying to
change the culture, and that does not happen overnight. We are hoping
for long-term results, not a flash in the pan. The student angst is
coming in the transition period."

Mr. Rausch said the restraints have led to increased use of the drug
ecstasy, or MDMA, an amphetamine derivative that is ingested orally in
pill or capsule form, or sniffed as powder. In some users, ecstasy
heightens sexual arousal, loosens inhibitions, and leads to extreme
states of relaxation.

"Lehigh is a very affluent campus," Mr. Rausch said. "A lot of times
where there is cash, the simple fact is that drugs are not far behind.
But we should be worried because ecstasy is a serious drug."

He said he was optimistic that the administrators and the students
might move closer together in the months ahead.

"I feel that the campus is listening and that they are concerned, but
a lot of students see the policy as threatening and annoying," Mr.
Rausch said. "It's going to take some time to iron out."