UNIVERSITY GEARING UP TO GO SUBSTANCE-FREE

Elimination Of Grade 13 Will Mean Many Students Are Under Legal Drinking Age

GUELPH -- The University of Guelph plans to introduce substance-free
residences before the elimination of Grade 13 brings younger students to
campus.

The university will mail promotional materials to new and returning
students applying for residence this year, offering them a chance to live
in legally enforced alcohol- and drug-free suites.

It represents a test run before the arrival of the "double cohort," which
will see an extra 33,500 students graduate from the new four-year secondary
school program in 2003, reducing the average age of university students by
a year.

"We want to phase in things before the double cohort arrives," said Irene
Thompson, assistant director of residence life at U of G.

"We've had interest in this from students, parents and our director of
student health services."

The university hopes to make several suites into substance-free areas for
the 2002-03 academic year, Thompson said. Before they arrive, students will
sign a legal contract with the university, promising they won't use
alcohol, tobacco or drugs in these residences, she added.

The plan follows news that Queen's University is considering the option of
at least one alcohol-free residence to deal with the elimination of Grade 13.

The Kingston university finds alcohol remains a significant problem for
some of its students, said Bob Crawford, dean of student affairs at Queen's.

"What's characteristic about Queen's is that we largely have a first-year
student residence system," Crawford said. "So, except for the dons, by 2004
we expect that almost all of the students in residence will be under the
legal drinking age."

About 30 per cent of first-year U of G students were under 19 this fall.
That will climb to about 70 per cent by 2005.

Schools like the University of Western Ontario already offer students in
residence the option of living on an alcohol-free floor.

And colleges in the United States routinely offer similar options, since
the drinking age of 21 in most states prevents new students from drinking
legally.

But U of G has its own unique challenges because, unlike Queen's, many of
its upper-year students continue to live in residence. This makes
completely alcohol-free residences less practical, said Brenda Whiteside,
associate vice-president of student affairs.

"It's not just good enough to say we are going to make residences
alcohol-free," Whiteside said.

"We need programs that students can enjoy outside of alcohol-related
events, so we are talking to younger students to ask, 'Where do you go, and
what do you do?' "

Todd Schenk, of the U of G Central Student Association, said such a plan at
U of G must also prevent parents from forcing their children into
substance-free residences, thus taking away a valuable part of campus life.

"One part of the university experience is decision-making," Schenk said.
"Alcohol is legal and, once they are 19, students should have the option to
drink in residence.

"When we didn't allow alcohol during the first three days of orientation
week, we found students were going off campus to drink," Schenk added.

"That's unfortunate because the policies here are more responsible than off
campus, and students are well supported here."

U of G tried to introduce substance-free residence suites as a pilot
project for the 2001-02 academic year but not enough students embraced the
option, Thompson said. She suspects they didn't have enough information
about the program to decide.