Butler Update: A Campus in Control

Assistant Chief of Police Andy Ryan

Butler University has had no alcohol-related deaths in the 19 years that Assistant Police Chief Andrew Ryan has been on the job.

His advice to students: Stay safe by removing the opportunity to become a victim.

His advice to universities and communities: Provide students alternative activities.

"We can always get a good feel for how the semester is going to go after the first weekend of school," says Ryan. "This semester, (Butler) University had additional late night programming. That made a difference in keeping students busy."

This past weekend, Homecoming activities at Butler took place on a much smaller scale than at Big Ten schools. But a law enforcement presence is still increased.

Tailgating can legally begin as early as 8 a.m. and continue until two hours after the end of the football game. Some students began drinking alcohol earlier than 8 a.m. at bars in the nearby Broad Ripple area.

Police enforcement is increased in the daytime and evening hours of Homecoming, but officers do not patrol and ID every person that is drinking, unless a student is belligerent or appears to be under the age of 21.

The Butler University Police Department also meets with the football team every year about making good decisions, learning Indiana alcohol laws and statutes regarding alcohol, and enforcing Butler's student Code of Conduct.

"I know what the law is and I know as a police officer they shouldn't be drinking, but I also understand that they are 18, 19, and 20, and some of those (students) are going to make that decision regardless of what I tell them or what someone else tells them."

The department also meets with resident assistant staffers at each dormitory to discuss behavior in the dorms. A video on departmental public safety is shown to all the freshmen at the beginning of the semester.

But many students will choose to drink regardless. "A lot of students are coming to campus with predisposed drinking behaviors," said Ryan. "They've been drinking since high school, some since junior high school. For them, coming to college means potentially more access."

Colts Update: Four Alcohol Incidents in One Year

Two minutes from Bob Kravitz on Pat McAfee's drunken swim in the Broad Ripple canal at 5 a.m. in the middle of the week might annoy you. But he does point out one interesting question - should all alcohol incidents be treated the same for pro football players?

Click here to take a listen (Be warned: there is a loud advertisement before the video begins.)

Binge Drinking: U.S. College Students Don't See the Problem

Recent research commissioned by The Century Council under contract with the Ad Council and conducted by the independent consulting firm Egg Strategy took an in-depth look at "type and tone" of messages that would cause a student to reconsider risky behavior with alcohol.

Among the key insights brought to light by students are:

• The term binge drinking is not relevant to students nor do they "buy into" the commonly used five drink/four drink definition;
• Communications campaigns should highlight the feelings of overconsumption, not the math. Students don't count standard drinks;
• Peer-based messaging works only if it's really about a student's peers, rather than an assortment of students from around campus;
• In general, scare tactics are not effective at connecting with students and are less likely to inspire behavior change;
• Messages that influence the situational factors surrounding a night of drinking are more readily accepted than those that overtly seek reductions in consumption.

The study found that messages should be delivered through campus newspapers and online media when the students are not drinking, and take a further step of harnessing the collective "approval" of social networking to validate and endorse positive behavior.

"The research released today will be extremely useful to campuses dealing with overconsumption of alcohol by students - many of whom arrive with drinking habits firmly established," said American Council on Education President Molly Corbett Broad.

The Ad Council/Egg Strategy presentation can be downloaded on the Century Council's Fighting College Binge Drinking page.

Cashing in on the Alcohol Culture

University of Minnesota President Bob Bruininks says he wants to push his state legislature to eliminate restrictions on alcohol sales at TCF Bank Stadium where the Gophers play. Is it about the money? Bruininks estimates that alcohol sales would generate $1.5 million a year for the Gophers athletics department, or roughly the cost of hiring a new football coach.

For the full story, click here.

Latest Website to Get Parents Talking to Kids about Alcohol

The New York State Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services (OASAS) announced a new educational website and PSA campaign to help parents talk to kids about the dangers of underage drinking.

Here's one of the online stats that Project RAD continues to point out from time to time:

A teenager who begins drinking before the age of 15 is seven times more likely to have an alcohol abuse or dependence issue later in life than someone who waits until age 21 to drink alcohol.

Visit the site at: http://www.talk2prevent.com

Florida Parents Struggling with "Open House" Party Laws

Recent parties in Boca Raton, Florida, in which parents were accused of hosting booze-fueled bashes for hundreds of teens has raised awareness of a 1991 state law some say many parents never knew existed.

If anyone younger than 21 is caught drinking alcohol or using drugs at a party in a Florida home or on privately owned property, the owner could be arrested and charged with a second-degree misdemeanor punishable by up to 60 days in jail and a $500 fine, according to Florida's "open house party" law.

Shlomo and Jeannie Rasabi

Police arrested Shlomo and Jeannie Rasabi and Paul and Ingrid Paolino at two homecoming after-parties for their teenage children in a span of eight days, between Oct. 10 and 17. All received notices to appear in court.

Alcohol was found at both locations and some underage

drinkers were arrested along with the host parents, who said they either didn't know about the drinking or could not control the mob of uninvited party-crashers who brought the alcohol with them, according to the police reports.

For the full story, click here.

Indiana State Police Crackdown Nets Hundreds

A recent statewide driving under the influence enforcement campaign that ran just one weekend resulted in 356 impaired driving arrests, according to the Indiana State Police. Troopers also issued 3,242 traffic citations and 6,018 written warnings. Officers also made 370 arrests for various criminal violations.