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fostering educational excellence and ensuring equal ac c e s s .

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Alcohol and Other 

Drug Prevention on 

College Campuses

Model Programs

U.S. Department of Education

Offi ce of Safe and Drug-Free Schools 
 This publication was funded by the Offi ce of Safe and Drug-Free Schools at the U.S. Department of Education under contracts number ED-99-CO-0094 and ED-04-CO-0137 with 

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U.S. Department of Education

Margaret Spellings

Secretary

Offi ce of Safe and Drug-Free Schools 

Deborah A. Price

Assistant Deputy Secretary

First printed 2000; updated November 2002 and September 2008.

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Schools, Alcohol and Other Drug Prevention on College Campuses: Model Programs, 

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iii

Contents

Why Be Concerned? ..................................................... 1

The Scope of the Problem ........................................... 2

What Colleges Are Doing to Address 

Alcohol and Other Drug Problems .............................. 4

Programs and Policies That Make a Difference ......... 4

Campuses With Award-winning Programs ................ 6

Auburn University ............................................................ 7

Boston College ................................................................. 8

Bowling Green State University ...................................... 9

George Mason University .............................................. 10

Gonzaga University ........................................................ 11

Grand Valley State University ....................................... 12

Hobart and William Smith Colleges .............................. 13

Hobart and William Smith Colleges .............................. 14

Lehigh University ........................................................... 15

Loyola Marymount University ...................................... 16

Massachusetts Institute of Technology ........................ 17

Michigan State University ............................................ 18

Montclair State University ............................................. 19

Rutgers University .......................................................... 20

San Diego State University ............................................ 21

Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute .................. 22

Syracuse University ........................................................ 23

The Ohio State University ............................................. 24

The Pennsylvania State University ............................... 25

The State University of New York at New Paltz .......... 26
University at Albany, 

State University of New York ........................................ 27

University at Albany, 

State University of New York ........................................ 28

University of Arizona ..................................................... 29

University of Arizona ..................................................... 30

University of Chicago ..................................................... 31

University of Missouri–Columbia .................................. 32

University of Missouri–Columbia .................................. 33

University of Nebraska–Lincoln .................................... 34

University of Northern Colorado .................................. 35

University of Pennsylvania ............................................ 36

Utah State University ..................................................... 37

Virginia Commonwealth University ............................. 38

Washington State University ........................................ 39

Western Washington University ................................... 40

iv
Why Be Concerned?

College can and should be an exciting, enriching experience. To 

help ensure that it will be, students and their parents will want 

to choose a college that fosters students’ academic and social 

development and promotes campus and community safety.

One critical element to consider is the alcohol and other drug 

culture of a campus. Far too often, alcohol and other drug abuse 

results in tragedy. Deaths from alcohol poisoning and from 

alcohol-related incidents have occurred on all types of campuses 

in recent years—elite schools and lesser-known institutions; large 

schools and small ones; urban, small town, and rural schools. In 

addition, alcohol and other drug abuse is a factor in the majority 

of accidents, injuries, vandalism, and crime on college campuses 

and is frequently a key factor when students encounter problems 

with their course work. 

Although the majority of college students avoid the unsafe use 

of alcohol and other drugs, they are still likely to suffer the 

consequences of the high-risk behaviors of their peers. Students 

who engage in high-risk drinking and other drug use are not just 

harming themselves but also those around them, and not just 

occasionally but with truly disturbing frequency.

By becoming informed about alcohol and other drug prevention 

efforts on college campuses, prospective college students can 

increase the likelihood that they will avoid alcohol- and other 

drug-related problems and have their dreams and expectations for 

college met. 
Alcohol and Other Drug Prevention on College Campuses

2

The Scope of the Problem

Studies confi rm that college campuses continue to experience 

signifi cant problems related to student alcohol and other drug 

abuse. Although the vast majority of college students are under 

the legal drinking age of 21, alcohol remains the clear drug of 

choice and the one that contributes to a wide range of problems. 

The 2006 Monitoring the Future Survey, conducted at colleges and 

universities across the country, found that of all U.S. college students, 

approximately 40 percent have engaged in high-risk drinking. Furthermore, the following percentages of students used various other 

drugs during 2005: marijuana (33.3 percent); ecstasy (2.9 percent); 

amphetamines (6.7 percent); hallucinogens (5.0 percent); cocaine 

(5.7 percent); methamphetamine (1.7 percent); and tranquilizers 

(6.4 percent). Such illicit drug use has been a factor in a number of 

serious adverse consequences, such as hospitalizations for overdoses 

and deaths.

The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism 

(NIAAA) published a report in April 2002, updated in 2005, that 

suggests a strong relationship between alcohol and other drug 

abuse and a variety of negative consequences for students. The 

report estimates that each year 1,700 college students die from 

alcohol-related unintentional injuries, including motor vehicle 

crashes. In addition, it further estimates that alcohol is involved 

in 599,000 unintentional injuries, 696,000 assaults, and 97,000 cases 

of sexual assault and acquaintance rape among college students. 

Alcohol abuse also creates academic problems among 25 percent 

of college students, such as earning lower grades, doing poorly 

on exams or papers, missing class, and falling behind. According 

to the NIAAA, fully 400,000 students had unprotected sex while 

under the infl uence of alcohol and more than 100,000 were too 

intoxicated to know whether they consented to sexual intercourse. 

More than 150,000 students developed a health problem related 

to alcohol, and between 1.2 and 1.5 percent of students attempted 

suicide because of alcohol or other drug abuse. Finally, 11 percent of students damaged property and 2.1 million students drove 

while under the infl uence of alcohol.
3

It is not only those who engage in high-risk drinking or other drug 

use who suffer adverse consequences from student alcohol abuse. 

Students who abstain, or who drink legally and moderately, frequently suffer secondhand effects from the behavior of other students 

who drink too much. Even though the majority of college students 

are not high-risk drinkers and one-fi fth abstain from all alcohol use, 

more than three-quarters of the students living in residence halls, 

fraternities, or sororities report that they have experienced at least one 

secondhand effect due to another student’s drinking.

College Students Encounter Problems

 When Others Drink Too Much*

60.5% had study or sleep interrupted

53.6% had to take care of a drunken student

29.3% had been insulted or humiliated

20.1% experienced an unwanted sexual advance 

(women)

18.6% had a serious argument or quarrel

13.6% had property damaged

 9.5% had been pushed, hit, or assaulted

 1.3% had been a victim of sexual assault or date 

rape (women)

*Figures apply only to abstaining and non-heavy drinking students in dorms and 

fraternity or sorority houses.

Source: Wechsler, H.; Lee, J. E.; Kuo, M.; and Lee, H.

References

Hingson, R.; Heeren, T.; Winter, M.; and Wechsler, H. “Magnitude of Alcohol-Related Mortality and Morbidity Among U.S. College Students Ages 18–24: Changes from 

1998 to 2001.” Annual Review of Public Health, 26, 259–279, 2005.

Johnston, L. D.; O’Malley, P. M.; Bachman, J. G.; and Schulenberg, J. E. Monitoring 

the Future National Survey Results on Drug Use, 1975–2005: Volume II, College Students 

and Adults Ages 19–45 (NIH Publication No. 06-5884) (Bethesda, Md.: National 

Institute on Drug Abuse, 2006).

Task Force of the National Advisory Council on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, National 

Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. A Call to Action: Changing the Culture of 

Drinking at U.S. Colleges (Washington, D.C.: National Institutes of Health, 2002); NIAAA 

statistics cited above in paragraph 3 are from A Snapshot of Annual High-Risk College Drinking Consequences at http://www.collegedrinkingprevention.gov/StatsSummaries/snapshot.aspx.

Wechsler, H.; Lee, J. E.; Kuo, M.; and Lee, H. “College Binge Drinking in the 

1990s: A Continuing Problem: Results of the Harvard School of Public Health 1999 

College Alcohol Study.” Journal of American College Health 48: 199–210, March 2000.
Alcohol and Other Drug Prevention on College Campuses

4

What Colleges Are Doing to Address Alcohol 

and Other Drug Problems

In response to growing awareness of and concern about alcohol 

and other drug problems, institutions of higher education 

are implementing policies and programs in an attempt to 

curb alcohol and other drug abuse and its associated negative 

consequences. Momentum is now building for comprehensive 

prevention approaches that combine traditional education 

programs with strategies aimed at changing the physical, 

social, legal, and economic environments on campuses and in 

surrounding communities. This environmental management 

approach recognizes that student behavior is infl uenced at 

multiple levels: personal, peer, institutional, community, and 

public policy. 

In other words, it is not enough for a college to distribute its 

alcohol and other drug policy in the back of a handbook, host a 

one-day alcohol awareness program or offer counseling programs 

for those who seek them to make the problem go away. Instead, 

college presidents need to exert leadership. They need to bring 

together faculty, administrators, staff, students, parents, alumni, 

and local community members to develop and implement strong, 

effective policies and programs. The goals of these efforts must 

be to decrease the availability of alcohol, increase the number and 

variety of alcohol-free social activities for students, and create a 

climate that discourages high-risk drinking.

Programs and Policies That Make a Difference

The following are examples of the strategies many colleges and 

universities are implementing that can have a positive infl uence 

on the campus culture regarding alcohol and other drug abuse:

J Forming partnerships with local communities to ensure that 

alcohol is not served to minors or to intoxicated students;

J Strengthening academic requirements;
5

J Scheduling classes on Fridays (This strategy emphasizes 

the importance of academics and discourages the alcoholfueled partying that may occur on Thursday nights if students 

do not need to attend classes on Fridays.);

J Keeping the library and recreational facilities open longer;

J Eliminating alcohol industry support for athletics programs 

(Accepting such funding can be seen as sending a mixed 

message to students.);

J Restricting alcohol promotions and advertising on campus 

and in campus publications, especially promotions or ads that 

feature low-cost drinks;

J Monitoring fraternities to ensure compliance with alcohol 

policies and laws;

J Providing a wide range of alcohol-free social and recreational 

activities;

J Disciplining repeat offenders and those who engage in 

unacceptable behavior associated with substance use; 

J Notifying parents when students engage in serious or repeated 

violations of alcohol or other drug policies or laws; and

J Launching a media campaign to inform students about the 

actual amount of drinking that occurs on campus, since 

most students overestimate the number of their classmates 

who drink and the amount that they drink.
Alcohol and Other Drug Prevention on College Campuses

6

Campuses With Award-winning Programs

In response to recent alcohol-related tragedies and to ongoing 

concern about unacceptable levels of alcohol and other drug use 

on college campuses, Congress authorized the U.S. Department 

of Education to identify and promote effective campus-based 

prevention programs. 

Since 1999, the U.S. Department of Education has awarded 

approximately $3.5 million to institutions of higher education 

(IHEs) in recognition of their programs. Through grant 

competitions held in 1999, 2000, 2001, 2004, 2005, 2006, and 

2007, 34 programs were designated as model programs. Each 

campus received an award to maintain, improve, or further 

evaluate its alcohol and other drug prevention efforts, and to 

disseminate information to other campuses where the programs 

might be replicated. 

To be given an award under this program, a campus was required 

to describe an innovative program or policy that was integrated 

into an overall comprehensive alcohol and other drug prevention 

effort. The institution also had to provide evidence that the 

innovative program or policy was effective in reducing the 

problems resulting from alcohol or other drug abuse. The awardwinning programs and policies are described in the pages that 

follow. Each model program is described as it was at the time of 

its award.

The particular programs described in this report have 

been recognized as effective alcohol and other drug 

prevention efforts. However, the U.S. Department of 

Education does not intend to imply that alcohol and other 

drug abuse or related problems at these institutions are 

any more or less pervasive than at other campuses.
Model Programs 7

Auburn University

Auburn University, Alabama

Health Behavior Assessment Center 

Alcohol Problem Prevention Initiative

Project Directors: Polly Dunn, Ph.D., Rudy Vuchinich, Ph.D., and James 

Murphy, M.S.

The Auburn University Health Behavior Assessment Center provides 

services to college students who have exhibited problems related to 

alcohol use. The program utilizes Brief Alcohol Screening and Intervention for College Students (BASICS), a program developed by 

researchers at the University of Washington. Students complete a 

questionnaire and, during one or two individual meetings with a 

counselor, receive feedback about how their drinking habits compare 

with those of the student body as a whole. They also learn how they 

might benefit by making some changes in their behavior. These 

sessions are supportive rather than confrontational and are designed to 

increase the student’s motivation to reduce alcohol consumption and 

related harm. 

Since 1997, the university has promoted the BASICS program through 

outreach efforts targeted at residence hall assistants, leaders and members of Greek Letter Organizations, and university medical clinic staff. 

Students have also been informed about the program through radio and 

newspaper advertising and class presentations. 

During the 1999-2000 academic year, a university study found that 

students who completed BASICS fared better than those who received a 

more traditional intervention that consisted of an educational video 

portraying the harms associated with alcohol abuse followed by an 

individual discussion with a clinician. BASICS participants reduced 

their average number of drinks per week and frequency of heavy 

drinking by 2 percent, their peak blood alcohol concentration levels by 

35 percent, and their rate of alcohol-related problems by 2 percent. 

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Boston College

Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts

Alcohol and Drug Education Program

Project Director: Kimberley Timpf

The Alcohol and Drug Education Program at Boston College is a 

comprehensive, community-based effort focused on creating signifi cant 

shifts in campus culture to encourage and support appropriate student 

behaviors regarding the use of alcohol.

The University Committee on Alcohol and Drug Abuse (UCADA) 

works to support policy and programs across the university, including 

athletics, dining services, and law enforcement. Ongoing training is 

provided for faculty, staff, and student leaders. The assistant dean for 

alcohol and drug education works with residential life staff to provide a 

specifi c, needs-based referral program for students who violate the 

university alcohol and drug policy. The comprehensive alcohol policy 

includes server guidelines, a ban on the use of student fees to purchase 

alcohol for university-sponsored events both on and off campus, and a 

ban on the marketing and promotion of alcohol on campus. 

Information from infi rmary reports, an online judicial database, and 

student surveys has yielded evidence of program success. Between 1999 

and 2000, alcohol-related incidents in a housing area popular with 

seniors were reduced by 33 percent, and incidents involving freshmen 

in that area were reduced by 88 percent. Also, the number of students 

sent to the infi rmary for alcohol intoxication during the fi rst six weeks 

of the academic year was reduced by 46 percent. And, a comparison of 

the 1998-99 and 1999-2000 fall semesters shows a decrease of 43 percent and 16 percent respectively, in the number of times Boston police 

had to address off-campus incidents involving Boston College students.

2001 Award Recipient
Model Programs 9

Bowling Green State University

Bowling Green, Ohio

BGSU Peer-Based Alcohol 

Misperception Program

Project Director: Terry L. Rentner, Ph.D.

Bowling Green State University’s program was designed to change 

student attitudes and behaviors and the campus social environment. 

Surveys were conducted to determine differences between the realities 

of student drinking and the perceived or imagined values and behaviors 

of students regarding drinking. The results indicated that students 

typically believe that their peers drink much more than they actually do. 

These results were presented in focus groups where students were 

encouraged to discuss the misperceptions and their infl uence on 

campus culture. Group members were also asked what types of prevention messages they would respond to and what kind of campus programs would be appealing. An “I Don’t Drink as Much as You Think” 

campaign was launched using creative mass media and interpersonal 

appeals to change student misperceptions of their peers’ drinking habits. 

The combination of small group surveys and focus group discussions 

was again implemented the following year, this time targeted to highrisk groups such as fraternities and sororities, athletics teams, and fi rstyear residents. Data indicate that the gaps between the perceived 

drinking norms and the actual norms are being corrected. In addition, 

the rate of excessive drinking among students decreased by 2.5 percent, 

4 percent fewer students experienced pressure to drink, and 4 percent 

fewer students heard others bragging about their drinking. 7

1999 Award Recipient
Alcohol and Other Drug Prevention on College Campuses Model Programs

10

George Mason University

Fairfax, Virginia 

Healthy Expectations: Preventing 

High-Risk Drinking by Transforming 

Campus Cultures

Project Director: David Anderson, Ph.D.

Healthy Expectations: Preventing High-Risk Drinking by Transforming 

Campus Cultures emphasizes healthy transitions to college for fi rst-year students at George Mason University. Its goal is to change the campus culture 

surrounding high-risk drinking through changing expectations, norms, and 

skills and promoting proactive life health planning. Its innovative, proactive approach engages students in the development of a personal legacy 

about how they want to be remembered and connects them to available 

resources. By complementing traditional campus-based efforts, Healthy 

Expectations seeks to address factors underlying alcohol abuse.

Students are encouraged to engage in “life health planning” processes 

centered around seven life health principles: optimism, values, selfcare, relationships, community, nature, and service. These principles 

emerged from an intensive and refl ective planning process designed to 

create healthy campus communities, with a reduced negative effect of 

alcohol or other drugs.

A capstone initiative of Healthy Expectations is COMPASS: A Roadmap 

to Healthy Living. This CD- and Web-based resource addresses the 

seven principles with 31 topics. Each topic includes an essay, “Looking 

Back” refl ection and “Moving Ahead” planning worksheets, and resources 

(campus, local and national) with Web site linkages. It also contains a 

downloadable screensaver, 360 inspirational quotes, and other resources. 

COMPASS is distributed to each fi rst-year student at the start of the 

academic year. Students receive regular e-newsletters (Transition Times) 

linking to COMPASS and encouraging participation in a range of activities and services on campus or linked to the project. 

Preliminary results suggest that the life health planning process may 

infl uence alcohol use patterns among fi rst-year students. During the 

time when the resources were implemented, self-reported alcohol use was 

down by a statistically signifi cant amount, while perceptions of others’ use 

patterns remained unchanged.

2006 Award Recipient
Model Programs

1

Gonzaga University

Spokane, WAshington

Project REAL—Culture, Campus, 

and Community: A Faith-Based and 

Community-Based Social Norms 

Approach Integrating Three Levels of 

Intervention

Project Directors: Mary Ritter Heitkemper, Ph.D., and Karen Contardo, M.A.

The project goal is to reduce high-risk drinking among students, using 

a multipart strategy that addresses prevention at three levels. A signifi -

cant feature of Project REAL is the high level of student initiative in 

planning and implementation.

Project REAL increased the campuswide social norms-social justice campaign 

to promote accurate healthy norms for alcohol drinking and nonuse. Students engage through interest areas, including service, community, spirituality, 

and other factors that motivate students to attend a faith-based university. 

Student-initiated, late-night programming alternatives to alcohol-centered 

socializing are available, and student attendance has increased. Freshmen 

receive a combination of social norms and harm reduction information in 

peer-led presentations. Students who are sanctioned for an alcohol violation 

participate in Brief Alcohol Screening and Intervention for College Students 

(BASICS) facilitated by graduate and undergraduate peer leaders.

This project engages parents through an interactive parent e-mail and 

has expanded into the Spokane community. Collaborative partnerships 

with community agencies and consistent proactive community meetings have increased.

Over a two-year period, there has been a 6 percent increase in the number 

of on-campus students who chose to abstain. Concurrently, there was a 

decrease in the number of students who consumed alcohol 10 or more days 

per month. Evidence indicates signifi cant reductions in quantity, frequency, and negative consequences of drinking at the indicated level. In pre-post 

analysis, students consumed fewer drinks on a typical weekend evening at 

follow-up than at intake.

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Grand Valley State University

Allendale, MIchigan

Alcohol Education Research and 

Training Laboratories (ALERT Labs)

Project Director: Nancy Harper, Ph.D.

The ultimate purpose of the ALERT Labs is to empower the majority of 

students who do not use alcohol and other drugs and those who drink 

moderately to recognize their majority, while reducing the dangerous 

and illegal drinking of the minority; and help those who have alcohol 

and other drug problems to recover.

The three goals of the program are to bring about (1) a decrease in the 

percentage of Grand Valley State University (GVSU) students who 

drink dangerously; (2) an increase in the number of underage students 

who abstain from drinking; and (3) an increase in the number of students who seek recovery from alcohol and other drug addiction.

Using media and interpersonal communication campaigns to correct 

misperceptions of social norms surrounding alcohol and other drugs is 

the project’s central prevention strategy. Much of people’s behavior is 

infl uenced by perceptions of how peers behave. Through data collection 

and publicizing of actual alcohol and other drug use norms, the pressures 

that precipitate alcohol and other drug problems can be relieved.

The project employs the following tactics:

J Passport Program—alcohol- and other drug-free housing and 

 events for abstainers;

J Pathways Recovery Program—sober housing, 12-step meetings, 

 and events for students in recovery;

J Annual Data Collection—interventions and media campaign based 

 on data from students; and

J Media Campaign—publicizing actual alcohol and other drug use 

 norms to correct misperceptions.

The percentage of students engaged in dangerous drinking (“binge” or 

“heavy drinking”) at GVSU decreased from 37 percent in 1999 to 25 

percent in 2006. Overall, misperceptions of the amount of dangerous 

drinking among students have declined by 33 percent and the behavior 

of drinking dangerously has declined by 30 percent. From these results, 

it appears that behavioral change follows perceptual change.

2004 Award Recipient
Model Programs

1

Hobart and William Smith Colleges

Geneva, New York

The HWS Alcohol Education Project 

Project Directors: H. Wesley Perkins, Ph.D., and David W. Craig, Ph.D.

Hobart and William Smith Colleges’ program initiated a comprehensive 

campaign to reduce harmful, exaggerated misperceptions about how 

much drinking occurs among students and to reduce actual alcohol 

abuse. The project involved the development of innovative social 

marketing strategies as well as new strategies for teaching about alcohol, 

other drugs, and violence in the academic curriculum. Major activities 

included: J a print and poster mass media campaign, based on local student 

survey data, to reduce drinking myths;

J an interdisciplinary course on alcohol abuse; J an electronic multimedia campaign that brought the content of 

both the print media and the interdisciplinary course to computers 

across campus and to the World Wide Web (www.hws.edu/

 alcohol); and J a faculty and student-teacher training initiative for infusing alcohol 

and other drug information into the curriculum across academic 

programs and for community coalition building. 

Along with substantial reductions in student misperceptions of peer 

drinking habits, follow-up program assessments have demonstrated a 21 

percent reduction in actual frequent heavy drinking. During this same 

period, students reported a 31 percent reduction in missed classes, a 36 

percent reduction in property damage, and a 40 percent reduction in 

unprotected sex due to drinking.

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Hobart and William Smith Colleges

Geneva, New York

Most Valuable Players—A Model 

Program Reinforcing Positive Norms, 

Correcting Misperceptions, and 

Reducing High-Risk Drinking Among 

Student Athletes 

Project Directors: H. Wesley Perkins, Ph.D., and David W. Craig, Ph.D.

The Alcohol Education Project developed the Most Valuable Players 

program to promote positive norms, reduce harmful misperceptions, and 

reduce high-risk drinking and its consequences among student athletes. 

Major activities included: (1) an anonymous, Web-based survey conducted 

among all student athletes at the institution, (2) a print and electronic massmedia campaign, (3) a student athlete peer educator team to promote accurate information about healthy athlete norms, and (4) training on social 

norms prevention strategies and actual athlete norms for athletics staff and 

student peer educators.

Outcomes between 2001 and 2003 included: (1) a 45 percent reduction in 

the proportion of student athletes misperceiving drinking more than once 

per week as the teammate norm, (2) a 46 percent reduction in the proportion of student athletes drinking more than once per week, (3) a 30 percent 

reduction in the proportion of student athletes reaching an estimated blood 

alcohol concentration of .08 percent or greater when drinking at parties and 

bars, (4) a 34 percent reduction in the proportion of student athletes experiencing frequent negative consequences due to drinking during the academic term, and (5) an average 2.5 hours per week increase in time spent in 

academic activities. In 2006, the project directors published the article “A 

Successful Social Norms Campaign to Reduce Alcohol Misuse Among College Student-Athletes” in the Journal of Studies on Alcohol (67[6], 880–888), 

documenting the positive effect of this program.

As a model program, this initiative has expanded by (1) further demonstrating positive norms based on anonymous breathalyzer testing and 

using these results in social norms campaigns, and (2) providing the Webbased Survey of Student-Athlete Norms for use by many other athletics 

programs in colleges and universities throughout the United States. 

2005 Award Recipient
Model Programs

1

Lehigh University

Bethlehem, Pennsylvania

Project IMPACT

Project Director: Madalyn Eadline

Lehigh’s Project IMPACT was launched in 1996 and has since established a campus and community coalition to address the problems of 

abusive drinking and its secondhand effects. Lehigh has implemented 

an environmental approach to transform the campus and community 

culture by making it more acceptable for students to choose not to 

drink and to encourage those students who do drink to do so in 

moderation. The program has raised awareness of the problems of highrisk drinking, expanded the number and type of alcohol-free social 

events for students, and improved relationships and cooperation with 

residents in the surrounding neighborhoods. Some of Lehigh’s accomplishments include: J a signifi cant increase in the number of students living in substancefree housing, from an initial 11 students to more than 200 who 

choose to be alcohol and drug free in their residences;

J an alcohol server training program that has engaged local bar and 

tavern owners to complete training that encourages responsible 

sales policies; and 

J improved cooperation and communication between the university 

and city police departments via community policing initiatives and 

active participation in the campus community coalition.

Since Lehigh initiated its new student alcohol policies, which outline 

clear expectations and consequences for alcohol use and abuse, there 

have been dramatic improvements. For example, hospital transports due 

to alcohol-related problems dropped 25 percent for the 1999-2000 

academic year from the previous year. Also, alcohol-related crimes on 

campus were down 51 percent, from 418 reports in 1998-99 to 204 in 

2000-01. 

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162005 Award Recipient

Loyola Marymount University

Los Angeles, CAlifornia

Heads UP: A Model Alcohol 

Prevention Program 

Project Director: Joseph W. LaBrie, Ph.D.

The Heads UP Model Alcohol Prevention Program employs a “nested 

model” of motivational alcohol interventions that target high-risk 

groups (freshman males, adjudicated students) while providing support and infrastructure for broader campus culture change with respect 

to drinking. Campuswide initiatives have been designed to infl uence 

views on alcohol use and abuse while also creating a campus culture 

supportive of responsible and mindful drinking behavior.

During the fi rst two years of Heads UP, 239 freshman male students 

received the intervention, with 78 percent completing follow-up. In 

addition, 251 adjudicated students (173 males and 78 females) received 

the intervention for alcohol-related violations, with 80 percent completing six months of follow-up. Only 23 percent of freshman males who 

received the intervention went on to receive an alcohol-related violation, while 47 percent of freshmen who did not receive an intervention 

received an alcohol-related sanction. Prior to Heads UP, 50 percent of 

students who received one alcohol-related sanction went on to receive 

another. Only 15 percent of adjudicated students who received the 

intervention went on to receive an additional sanction.

To disseminate the protocol and success of Heads UP, the project is 

completing a treatment manual for publication, has completed and 

maintains its Web site, and continues to publish its fi ndings. Furthermore, staff collaborated with the Safety Abroad First - Educational 

Travel Information (SAFETI) Consortium to develop alcohol abuse 

prevention programming for use with students prior to their departure 

for their study abroad host country. The project continues its campus culture improvements with its annual poster campaign. It also has 

designed and is currently implementing a second-line sanction for those 

returning, judicially referred students in need of a more acute intervention.
Model Programs

1

Massachusetts Institute of 

Technology

Cambridge, MAssachusetts

MIT-SBI Systemic Model: The 

Systematic and Systemic Application 

of Alcohol Screening and Brief 

Intervention for College Students

Project Directors: John Benedick and Danny Trujillo, Ph.D.

The MIT Screening and Brief Intervention Systemic model (MITSBI) builds on a National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism 

(NIAAA) tier I strategy (Brief Alcohol Screening and Intervention for 

College Students—BASICS) by applying the intervention to multiple 

high-risk populations in a fl uid, integrated manner. This systemic 

model screens: (1) fi rst-year students, (2) student athletes, (3) students 

violating alcohol policies, and (4) students presenting at health services 

with an alcohol-related injury or overdose. 

Research has shown the MIT-SBI Systemic model effective, providing signifi cant reductions in alcohol use and associated negative consequences. 

The program provides early screening to 85 percent of fi rst-year students 

and 95 percent of student athletes—representing the screening of nearly 

50 percent of the undergraduate population each year. This systemic 

model builds upon overall alcohol abuse prevention efforts by complementing and strengthening NIAAA tier 2/3 strategies. 

In 2005–06, students screened into the BASICS program (feedback and 

interviews) were compared with similar students receiving only online 

feedback. This matched-subjects design showed peak alcohol consumption and heavy episodic drinking were signifi cantly reduced for both 

groups (BASICS group showed a 38 percent reduction in heavy episodic 

drinking; the feedback-only group showed a 27 percent reduction in 

heavy episodic drinking). Since both groups received individualized feedback, the 2007 evaluation cycle compares the BASICS program group 

with a no-feedback control group. The cumulative results will help determine whether the intervention would be more cost effective by referring 

frequent high-risk drinkers to the face-to-face interviews while also providing online feedback for drinkers who may not exhibit high-risk behaviors.

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182007 Award Recipient

Michigan State University 

East Lansing, Michigan 

Disseminating Proven Models for 

Challenging the Environment of 

High-Risk Drinking 

Project Directors: Dennis Martell, Ph.D., and Sandi Smith, Ph.D.

The focus of this project is to enhance and disseminate the innovative 

strategies and signifi cant results of Michigan State University’s (MSU) 

recent social norms marketing campaign. MSU’s campaign team has attained substantial success by designing messages that feature descriptive, 

injunctive, and protective norms based on the drinking behavior and 

attitudes of students around both global and celebratory events. From 

2000 to 2007, the MSU model promoted positive norms, reduced misperceptions, increased protective behaviors, and reduced self-reported 

rates of alcohol consumption; for example, the quantity consumed 

the last time students partied or socialized declined from 5.42 drinks 

(defi ned in the survey as “a 12 oz. beer, a 4 oz. glass of wine, a shot of 

liquor, or a mixed drink”) in 2000 to 4.97 drinks in 2006 as measured 

on the NCHA survey. The theory-based, student-informed campaign 

combined with environmental management strategies has gradually 

changed the culture of drinking at MSU.

National dissemination of this program will occur through development 

of a Web site that will provide interactive instructions for researchers 

and practitioners who want to utilize features of the program; creation 

of a handbook on the development and implementation of a social 

norms marketing campaign; provision of services as consultants to other 

institutions of higher education via hosting teleconferences; and presentation of workshop sessions at meetings and conferences. 

In addition, enhancements to the current program include assessing 

the viability of using Facebook to identify student reference groups and 

their normative behavior, using an audience response system (clickers) 

during presentations to demonstrate misperceptions and to provide immediate corrective normative information, and creating a student page 

on the Web site to highlight MSU campaign results, including student 

misperceptions.
Model Programs

1

Montclair State University

Montclair, New Jersey 

Montclair Social Norms Project

Project Director: Brenda Marshall, Ed.D., CHES, MAC

The Montclair Social Norms Program (MSNP), reaching Montclair 

State University (MSU) students since 2003, is a comprehensive, environmental, multimedia, evidence-based social norming campaign. The 

poster and student engagement initiative is based in Wellness Education 

with the research and family outreach components in the College of 

Education and Human Services, Department of Health and Nutrition 

Sciences. The MSNP thrives on strong, campuswide interdepartmental 

collaboration and administrative support. The aim of the MSNP is 

to reduce overall student alcohol consumption through education and 

marketing of social norms. Delivery strategies include poster advertisements, e-mail and Web announcements, newspaper ads, table tents in 

dining halls, features in monthly student newspapers, family outreach 

through OUR SPACE for parents and guardians of freshmen, event 

partnering on campus, promotional items and giveaways, and sponsorship in various student events. The project also includes outreach 

efforts by peer advocates and dissemination of student-initiated alcohol 

use and social norms research. The MSNP’s ability to increase student 

awareness of actual drinking norms (most MSU students drink 0–4 

drinks when they go out) has been instrumental in reducing the percentage of student misperception of alcohol use by peers (30 percent), 

decreasing the amount of excessive alcohol use behaviors by students 

(30 percent), decreasing the associated alcohol-related violations both 

on and off campus (32 percent), and increasing student engagement in 

the social norms process over the 2003–07 period.

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Rutgers University

Piscataway, New Jersey

RU SURE?

Changing the Culture of College 

Drinking

Project Directors: Linda C. Lederman, Ph.D., and Lea P. Stewart, Ph.D.

Rutgers University utilizes a fi ve-pronged approach of prevention, 

education, intervention, treatment, and enforcement to address 

the issue of dangerous drinking on campus. A key component of its 

multi-faceted approach is CHI, the Communication and Health Issues 

Research Partnership for Education and Research. CHI created the 

RU SURE? campaign, which aims to decrease dangerous drinking 

among fi rst-year students by reducing their misperceptions of dangerous drinking as a campus norm. The research-driven campaign is based 

on Lederman and Stewart’s Socially Situated Experiential Learning 

Model. The RU SURE? campaign includes a media campaign; a 

curriculum infusion plan; peer-led, hands-on learning activities in 

fi rst-year residence halls; collaboration among faculty, health professionals, and students; and a community coalition. Through focus 

group interviews, individual interviews, and Web site feedback, campaign evaluation yielded positive results. The percentage of students 

who could accurately report the percentage of students who do not 

drink dangerously rose from 17 percent to 55 percent. Students in 

the curriculum-infusion component reduced their typical number of 

drinks consumed per occasion from a mean of 4.5 to 3.7. Also, the 

number of reported incidents of assault, disorderly conduct, harassment, and vandalism decreased in fi rst-year residence halls.

2000 Award Recipient
Model Programs

2

San Diego State University

San Diego, California

Community-Collegiate Alcohol 

Prevention Partnership 

Project Director: John D. Clapp, Ph.D.

San Diego State University’s Community-Collegiate Alcohol Prevention Partnership (C-CAPP) program is a comprehensive and ongoing 

alcohol prevention effort. Beginning in 1997, C-CAPP has developed 

and implemented a science-based, data-driven alcohol prevention 

program that strategically works to change environmental conditions 

related to alcohol use and misuse within the college student population 

residing in San Diego. The program’s goals include: J reducing alcohol-related promotions and advertising occurring 

on campus or specifi cally targeting college students on the San 

Diego State University (SDSU) campus;

J reducing heavy episodic drinking by SDSU students; and J reducing alcohol-related problems involving SDSU students.

C-CAPP uses a town-gown coalition of students, community leaders, 

law enforcement representatives, business representatives (including bar 

owners), and researchers to develop, implement, and evaluate environmental prevention strategies. Strategies include increased law enforcement, responsible beverage service training, media advocacy, normative 

campaigns, and policy development. The program is part of SDSU’s 

overall approach to alcohol and other drug problems and embraces the 

need to work collaboratively within the campus and the greater San 

Diego community. 

Since its inception, C-CAPP’s efforts have resulted in policy changes, 

including the elimination of low-price drink promotions at a number 

of bars and nightclubs. In addition, C-CAPP has targeted private 

parties and underage drinking through specialized law enforcement 

activities. These efforts, in concert with numerous others, have led to 

a reduction in the frequency of heavy episodic drinking at SDSU. The 

mean number of times students reported episodic heavy drinking during a two-week period decreased 30.7 percent between 1998 and 2000.

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Southwestern Indian 

Polytechnic Institute

Albuquerque, New Mexico

Twelve Feathers Program

Project Director: Johnnie J. Wardlow

Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute (SIPI) is a unique two-year 

institution: all students are tribal members from more than 100 

different Native American communities across the country. The 

Twelve Feathers Program is a culturally appropriate alcohol and other 

drug prevention program that targets high-risk students. 

Experiential Group Counseling provides an alternative therapeutic 

approach that incorporates adventure-based activities such as river 

rafting and rope climbing. Problem solving in a safe environment 

allows students to build self-esteem and teamwork and directs students 

to seek help and assistance when needed. Activities are designed to help 

group members to become more responsible for the choices they make 

in their lives. Students who experience the Twelve Feathers Program 

activities are empowered to become role models and leaders on campus. An important part of the Twelve Feathers Program at SIPI is to 

help students have an awareness and understanding of their traditions 

and culture. The program therefore provides opportunities for students 

to participate in tribal ceremonies and learn Native American arts and 

crafts. 

Students who participated in the Twelve Feathers Program uniformly 

reported positive experiences. Of the 135 students on Behavioral 

Contracts who participated in Experiential Counseling and traditional 

Native American activities from spring 1999 through fall 2000, 71 

percent successfully completed their contracts. 

2001 Award Recipient
Model Programs

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Syracuse University

Syracuse, New York

Twelve-Point Plan for Substance 

Abuse Prevention and Health 

Enhancement

Project Director: Anastasia L. Urtz, J.D.

Consistent enforcement of underage drinking laws and university 

policies has been critical to the initial success of Syracuse University’s 

Twelve-Point Plan—a comprehensive approach to alcohol and other 

drug prevention. The university has worked with state and local 

offi cials, a campus-community coalition (including tavern owners, 

other local colleges, health professionals, and neighborhood residents), 

students, parents, faculty, and staff to: J restructure the university judicial system to achieve swift adjudication, student education, and resource referral; J create standard progressive sanctions for substance abuse-related 

policy violations, thereby providing advance notice of the consequences of misconduct;

J implement an enhanced parental notifi cation policy; J design a Neighborhood Patrol Initiative to address underage 

drinking and other off-campus quality of life issues; and

J report to state and local authorities incidents of unlawful distribution of alcohol to minors or intoxicated persons by licensed 

 establishments.

The results of these efforts between the fi rst and last quarters of the 

1999-2000 academic year were reductions in alcohol-related misconduct (412 cases down to 48 cases); off-campus student arrests and 

referrals for discipline (50 cases down to 3 cases); and emergency 

medical transports for severe intoxication (20 cases down to 2 cases). 

Also, student attendance at alcohol-free social options such as a Late 

Night at the Gym program, a campus dance club, and a campus coffee 

house has increased.
Alcohol and Other Drug Prevention on College Campuses Model Programs

24

The Ohio State University

Columbus, Ohio 

Healthy Bodies, Healthy Minds: The 

Recreational Sports Prevention Program 

—Alcohol Prevention Programming for 

Specific Populations on Campus

Project Director: Constance Boehm

Data gathered from the Core Alcohol and Drug Survey (2000, 2002, 

and 2004) indicated that intramural and sport club participants at the 

Ohio State University engaged in more high-risk drinking and experienced more negative consequences related to their alcohol use than their 

nonparticipating peers. 

In October 2005, the Student Wellness Center at the Ohio State 

University launched a fi ve-part prevention program, branded under the 

name Healthy Bodies, Healthy Minds, specifi cally to target intramural 

and sport club participants with alcohol risk-reduction messages. The 

program consisted of alcohol and other drug education workshops, a 

social norms marketing campaign, alcohol-free late-night events, BASICS 

one-on-one alcohol counseling, and assessment. Each piece of the 

program was advertised under the Healthy Bodies, Healthy Minds logo, 

and messages were consistent throughout the comprehensive program. 

The Healthy Bodies, Healthy Minds program reached an estimated 

28,000 students with over 2,500 attending education sessions and over 

9,800 attending late-night events.

The program resulted in a 4.7 percent decrease in binge drinking (fi ve or 

more drinks one or more times in the last two weeks), a 6 percent decrease 

in frequent binge drinking (fi ve or more drinks three or more times in the 

last two weeks), and a 10.74 percent decrease in the mean number of drinks 

consumed per week by the target population. Education sessions resulted 

in an increase in knowledge and changes in perceptions and attitudes for 

participants. 

Downloadable quarterly reports and additional information are available at the Web site shown above.

2005 Award Recipient
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The Pennsylvania State University

University Park, Pennsylvania

The LateNight PennState Program

Project Director: Dolores W. Maney, Ph.D.

The Pennsylvania State University’s alcohol-free “LateNight PennState” 

program is an alternative activity program offering students multiple 

forms of free entertainment as a means of curbing high-risk drinking. 

The goals of the program include: J delivering quality entertainment; J providing a variety of alcohol-free programs that meet the interests 

of a diverse student body;

J encouraging student involvement in designing and implementing 

programs; and

J increasing awareness of the program. 

Events are offered during prime-time social hours (9 p.m. to 2 a.m.) on 

16 weekends each semester. Programs are held at the on-campus 

student union building and include free movies, ballroom or swing 

dancing, music, comedy, traditional board games, video games, and 

magic shows. A majority (71 percent) of students who attended 

LateNight PennState events reported that participation in this program 

resulted in less drinking for themselves and for other students. 
Alcohol and Other Drug Prevention on College Campuses Model Programs

26

The State University of New 

York at New Paltz

New Paltz, New York

A Comprehensive Model Utilizing 

Social Norms and Community 

Collaboration for Alcohol Prevention

Project Directors: Raymond Schwarz, Ph.D., Robin Cohen, M.A.,

and Michelle Cangelosi, M.Ed., CHES

With the strong support of university leaders, the State University of New 

York at New Paltz has been successful in developing and implementing a 

comprehensive alcohol prevention program since 1986. New Paltz strives 

to (1) reduce high-risk alcohol use, (2) make it acceptable not to use 

alcohol, (3) ensure safety through the institutional and cultural intolerance of misuse, and (4) correct incoming students’ misperceptions about 

campus drinking behavior. In order to achieve these objectives, the 

following six strategies are being implemented:

J freshman initiatives that provide theatrical skits, parental involvement, and curriculum infusion;

J community-university collaboration that includes a Tavern Owner’s 

Agreement to reduce high-risk specials and a risk management policy 

for Greek Letter organizations;

J multimedia social marketing campaigns that disseminate posters, 

print ads, TV ads, radio ads, fortune cookies, and mousepads;

J campus activities such as “Major Connections” events (where students 

interact with faculty), coffee houses, video dance parties, late movie 

and gym hours, shopping trips, and pizza parties; 

J policies and enforcement that include clearly communicated policies 

and an institutional response to each incident; and

J intervention strategies that include parental notifi cation of student 

infractions, along with education and/or referral to counseling for 

those found in violation of campus policies.

The effectiveness of these initiatives has been demonstrated by a 21 

percent decrease in the high-risk drinking rate, a 40 percent decrease in 

alcohol-related public misconduct, and a 39 percent decrease in alcoholrelated personal problems over the period 1992-96.

2001 Award Recipient
Model Programs

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University at Albany,

State University of New York

Albany, New York

Middle Earth: Students Helping 

Students

Project Directors: Maria Dolores Cimini, Ph.D., and Danny A. Trujillo, Ph.D.

In existence since 1970, the University at Albany’s peer assistance center 

has focused on peer counseling and education in its alcohol and other 

drug prevention efforts. As part of the counseling center, Middle Earth 

has continually evolved to incorporate new information and strategies 

to effect positive change. In 1970, it launched one of the fi rst hotlines 

of its kind, an anonymous information and referral option for students. 

During the 1999-2000 academic year, the hotline received over 1,600 

calls, with alcohol and other drug concerns being one of the three 

primary issues raised by callers. In 1983, the center began to conduct 

traditional peer education workshops for students on alcohol and other 

drugs. Today, one of the strongest and most visible aspects of the 

program is an improvisational theater group, the Middle Earth Players. 

Their presentations involve the audience in generating solutions to 

confl ict situations around alcohol and other drugs. Since 1998, this 

theatrical program has been presented to all new students during 

orientation. Students who join the Middle Earth program as peer 

educators report signifi cantly lower rates of alcohol and other drug use 

as compared to the whole campus community. Also, research involving 

2,300 new University at Albany students who attended Middle Earth 

Players’ presentations indicated reported reductions in drinking rates 

when measured at the three-month follow-up.
Alcohol and Other Drug Prevention on College Campuses Model Programs

28

University at Albany,

State University of New York

Albany, New York

The Committee on University and 

Community Relations: A Model 

Campus–Community Partnership at a 

State University Center

Project Director: Thomas L. Gebhardt, M.A.

In existence at the University at Albany since 1990, the Committee on 

University and Community Relations has served as a central initiative 

within the university’s Comprehensive Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse 

Prevention Program. Continuing the work of the campus and community coalition, this project developed, implemented, and evaluated 

a coordinated and multifaceted campus and community-based social 

norms media campaign that incorporated the unique delivery of information on the health-related and protective behaviors of University at 

Albany students to both students on and off campus and to members of 

the local Albany residential and business community. 

Project goals included: (1) to reduce high-risk drinking rates and 

associated high-risk behaviors and increase protective behaviors in oncampus and off-campus students; (2) to correct misperceptions of the 

alcohol use rates of University at Albany students, particularly those of 

off-campus students, held by members of the campus and in the local 

community; (3) to identify and describe the effective ingredients of a 

successful campus and community coalition; and (4) to institutionalize 

effective program components and disseminate information concerning 

the effective components of this project to institutions of higher education on local, state, and national levels. Outcome data suggest that 

project interventions have been successful in correcting campus and 

community misperceptions of University at Albany student behavior 

and in improving the quality of life both on and off campus. An additional outcome has been the enhancement of communication between 

the University at Albany campus and the local community.

2006 Award Recipient
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University of Arizona

Tucson, Arizona

Social Norms and Environmental 

Management 

Project Director: Koreen Johannessen, M.S.W.

The University of Arizona’s two-pronged alcohol abuse prevention 

program has demonstrated its effectiveness in its reduction of heavy 

drinking by 29 percent in a three-year period. The program also 

signifi cantly reduced the incidence of negative consequences of heavy 

and high-risk drinking among college students. The social norms 

approach—the fi rst prong—based on the knowledge that students 

overestimate alcohol use among their peers, exposed the difference 

between actual and perceived drinking norms. Through a newspaper 

and poster ad campaign and through working with policymakers and 

community groups, information on actual norms was broadcast 

campuswide. Environmental management—the second prong— 

identifi ed specifi c policy and enforcement changes needed around 

drinking. Student leaders and administrators worked closely with 

campus health, campus and community police, and student and 

community affairs offi ces on shared issues of campus and community 

safety. Targets for action included large campus celebrations such as 

Homecoming, Fraternity Bid Night, and fraternity and sorority parties. 

Early in the semester, emphasis was placed on: consistent enforcement 

of policies and laws related to underage drinking; type, amount, and 

service of food and alcohol at parties and large events; elimination of 

open parties; dramatic reduction in access to alcohol during athletic 

events; and elimination of alcohol industry sponsorship campuswide. 

Specifi c activities encouraged safer neighborhoods, good-neighbor 

policies and community partnerships to reduce underage access to 

alcohol in the community.
Alcohol and Other Drug Prevention on College Campuses Model Programs

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University of Arizona

Tucson, Arizona

Changing the Environment and 

Culture of Fraternity and Sorority 

High-Risk Drinking 

Project Team: Melissa Vito, Ph.D., Carolyn Collins, M.S., and Peggy Glider, Ph.D.

The University of Arizona has effectively reduced heavy and high-risk 

drinking and related negative consequences among social fraternity 

members (Greeks) using a three-pronged alcohol abuse prevention 

program: Brief Alcohol Screening and Intervention for College Students 

(BASICS); a sorority-specifi c social norms marketing campaign; and 

environmental management strategies. BASICS was initially implemented with fraternity pledges. Participants completed a survey at intake and three months later. Decreases were found in average times per 

week students drank, average drinks consumed per week, average blood 

alcohol concentration and problem behaviors such as driving under 

the infl uence, and missing class. There also was signifi cant movement 

in the stage of change (movement toward the action stage). Sorority 

women also reported decreases in alcohol consumption and negative 

consequences and increases in the use of protective behaviors when they 

drank, as measured by an anonymous survey administered each spring 

during sorority chapter meetings. 

These strategies were enhanced by (1) conducting BASICS with both 

fraternity and sorority pledges, Greek students who violated alcohol and 

other drug policies and laws, and all members of Greek chapters on probation for alcohol-related violations; (2) using targeted and enhanced 

social norms media to correct sorority women’s misperceptions of 

alcohol and other drug use and behavioral norms; and (3) continuing to 

limit accessibility and availability of alcohol through increased enforcement, community partnerships, and underage drinking prevention 

initiatives. 

2005 Award Recipient
Model Programs

3

University of Chicago

Chicago, ILlinois

Noctis Sero (Late Night) Project 

Project Directors: Sarah Van Orman, M.D., Kelley Caramelli, CHES, and 

Tara Paulson, M.P.H.

The Noctis Sero (Late Night) project built on existing, effective, and 

comprehensive substance use prevention at the University of Chicago 

by broadening the campus “Life of the Mind” pursuit to include latenight, alcohol-free events and social norms marketing. The program 

was implemented to (1) promote collaboration in alcohol and other 

drugs dialogue, policy, and action among both students and staff, (2) 

collect annual and ongoing evidence-based data about student health 

behaviors, (3) infuse campus identity and character into alcohol and 

other drug programming efforts, and (4) enact comprehensive alcohol 

and other drug outreach to correct students’ alcohol and other drug use 

misperceptions and instill awareness of campus alcohol and other drug 

norms. Further elements of the program included addressing stress-induced drinking and marijuana initiation during the college years, expanding existing program evaluation methods, and broadening the limited 

research literature on graduate student-specifi c alcohol and other drug 

health behaviors and intervention strategies. 

The Noctis Sero project achieved its goals and objectives. Some of the 

data received through surveys performed throughout the grant include 

the following: J Eighty-eight percent reporting, “Yes, I would come again to a 

similar event.”

J Attendance at the events, with an average of 250 students per 

event: 1,780 (fall 2004); 3,215 (winter 2005); 3,530 (spring 

2005); 2,050 (fall 2005); and 1,350 (winter 2006). 

J Five percent decrease in health survey reports of students reporting they typically drink when feeling stressed or tense. J Five percent increase in the “believability” of the campus social 

norming campaign. This secondary target measure included 

reducing by 5 percent the number of graduate students and 

undergraduate students who “misperceived” that their “peers” 

consumed on average fi ve or more drinks in a sitting. 

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321999 Award Recipient

University of Missouri–Columbia

Columbia, Missouri

Alcohol Summit

Project Director: Kim Dude, M.Ed.

The University of Missouri–Columbia’s program involves the Alcohol 

Summit, a coalition that is creating major change on the campus and in 

the community. The university’s chancellor appointed this blue-ribbon 

task force to address the problems occurring as a result of alcohol and 

drug use on campus. Task force members represented student organizations, faculty, and staff from campus police, the judicial offi ce, health 

services, athletics, alumni relations, and admissions. Also included were 

community leaders such as the mayor, high school counselors, city 

police, local bar owners, and deans of two local colleges. After months 

of study, Alcohol Summit members concluded that the campus and 

community environment needed to be changed through an integrated 

approach that would include programs, policies, and public education 

campaigns. Positive changes have been brought about by:

J increasing the enforcement of existing policies;

J instituting new policies;

J changing the campus judicial process;

J increasing faculty and staff training;

J creating media campaigns that address social norms;

J training student leaders;

J providing early intervention strategies and services;

J creating alcohol-free social events; and

J limiting access to alcohol.

Preliminary program outcomes include a 7 percent reduction in the 

excessive drinking rate among freshmen, reductions in driving-whileintoxicated (DWI) incidents on campus, and a decrease in the number 

of alcohol violations in the residence halls.
Model Programs

3

University of Missouri–Columbia

Columbia, Missouri

MUmythbusters

Project Director: Kim Dude, M.Ed.

The Wellness Resource Center at the University of Missouri-Columbia 

is increasing the number of students who make responsible decisions in 

regard to alcohol by changing the norms and behaviors of the students 

through implementing two comprehensive interventions. The “Most 

of Us Make Healthy, Safe and Smart Choices” campaign is a comprehensive social norming campaign that emphasizes protective factors and 

injunctive norms. The biweekly “MUmythbusters” campaign addresses 

myths about the environment in which students drink and about students’ drinking expectations. These myths are countered with facts in a 

comprehensive ongoing marketing campaign. 

The research has indicated an improvement in the very behaviors targeted 

in the “Most of Us Make Healthy, Safe and Smart Choices” campaign: J Students who alternated nonalcoholic drinks with alcoholic 

drinks increased 44 percent;

J Students who decided before they went out on a set number of 

drinks increased 38 percent;

J Students who used a designated driver increased 25 percent; J Students who ate before or during drinking increased 25 percent; J Students who did not drink Sunday through Thursday nights 

increased 37 percent;

J Students who had been a designated driver increased 9 percent; J Students who would rather kiss someone who is not drunk 

increased 10 percent;

J Students who do not drink if they have academic obligations the 

next day increased 6 percent;

J Students whose interests in someone decreases if they are intoxicated increased 15 percent; and J Students who are embarrassed with a date who is intoxicated 

increased 11 percent.

Evaluation data suggest that 87.1 percent of MU students reported having seen an MUmythbusters message via at least one medium (e.g., fl yers, 

T-shirts). Additionally, students reported seeing the message, on average, 

in one to two different media.

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University of Nebraska-Lincoln

Lincoln, NEbraska

Nebraska Collegiate Consortium to 

Reduce High-Risk Drinking

Project Director: Ian M. Newman, Ph.D.

The Nebraska Collegiate Consortium to Reduce High-Risk Drinking 

(NCC), administered by the Nebraska Prevention Center for Alcohol 

and Drug Abuse at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL), provides 

the tools, technical assistance, and training to create comprehensive 

environmental strategies to reduce high-risk alcohol consumption and 

alcohol-related harm at the 11 state colleges, universities, and community 

colleges in Nebraska, which represent 79 percent of the college students 

in the state. In the long-term the NCC seeks to replicate at other colleges 

the successful anti-binge drinking project conducted at UNL. UNL’s 

program, the NU Directions Campus-Community Coalition, was one of 

10 A Matter of Degree (AMOD) projects funded by the Robert Wood 

Johnson Foundation. Data from NU Directions indicated a reduction 

of binge drinking rates among UNL students from 62.5 percent in 1997 

to 41.5 percent in 2005, with similar reductions noted for other alcohol 

behaviors and alcohol-related problems. 

During the U.S. Department of Education grant period, the NCC staff 

recruited upper-level administrators from each campus; worked with each 

campus to establish a campus task force on high-risk drinking; assisted 

campuses to collect baseline alcohol data; and provided training on strategic planning, environmental scanning, and creative ways to use campus 

alcohol data. By the end of the grant, each campus had formed or was in 

the process of forming a campus-community coalition to address environmental factors of high-risk drinking. Each campus had a comprehensive 

strategic plan for reducing high-risk drinking among its students. In addition NCC created a Web-based brief intervention-motivational feedback 

program using campus-specifi c alcohol data. 

2005 Award Recipient
Model Programs

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University of Northern Colorado

Greeley, Colorado

The UNC Underage Drinking 

Enforcement Program

Project Director: Ann Quinn-Zobeck, Ph.D.

The University of Northern Colorado’s program uses a campus and 

community coalition to coordinate local ordinances, enforcement efforts, 

and education programs to provide the consistent message to students 

and the community that underage drinking is not acceptable. A signifi -

cant part of the university’s comprehensive program is a cooperative 

effort between the UNC Drug Prevention/Education Program and 

campus and local law enforcement agencies to enforce underage drinking 

laws. Offenders are charged under a municipal ordinance, which means 

that cases are heard by a local judge who takes them seriously and 

handles them in a timely fashion, requiring violators to pay fi nes, attend 

education classes, and perform community service. During summer 

orientation, incoming students are informed of the enforcement of 

underage drinking laws and policies and the sanctions for violations. As 

students arrive on campus, door hangers in residence halls remind them 

of alcohol laws and policies and also list alcohol-free events on campus. 

During the early weeks of fall semester, teams of local and campus police patrol the off-campus neighborhoods where students live. When they 

encounter a party where alcohol is being served to minors, they stop the 

party and cite the host. After these policies were implemented, an oncampus survey indicated a 12 percent decrease in the incidence of heavy 

alcohol use and a 33 percent reduction in the percentage of students 

driving after drinking.
Alcohol and Other Drug Prevention on College Campuses Model Programs

362000 Award Recipient

University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Comprehensive Alcohol and Other 

Drug Model Program

Project Directors: Max King, Ph.D., and Stephanie Ives, M.A.

The University of Pennsylvania has consistently worked to fi ght alcohol 

and other drug abuse on campus. In 1990, the university developed an 

alcohol and other drug abuse prevention task force to begin the solution 

process. The university undertook a social norms approach in 1995. 

Three years later, the president convened the Special Committee on 

Alcohol Abuse. By spring 1999, the university decided to consolidate 

the goals, objectives, and activities of a variety of campus stakeholders 

into a comprehensive alcohol and other drug abuse prevention program through the Working Group on Alcohol Abuse (WGAA). This 

group devised fi ve goals to support cultural change:

J increasing and improving alcohol and other drug education;

J ensuring an environment supportive of low-risk alcohol use and 

abstaining behaviors;

J ensuring individual and group responsibility relating to alcoholassociated behaviors and consequences;

J minimizing individual, group, and community risk associated with 

substance use; and

J expanding opportunities for students to socialize without alcohol. 

With the visible and vocal leadership of the president and provost, the 

WGAA has made considerable progress. In spring 2000, 33 percent 

of students responding to an online survey reported engaging in binge 

drinking in the previous two weeks. This is a signifi cant decrease from 

the 49 percent binge drinking rate among Penn students reported in 

the 1993 and 1997 College Alcohol Study surveys conducted by the 

Harvard School of Public Health.
Model Programs

3

1999 A

d R

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t

Utah State University

Logan, Utah

Judicial System Model

Project Director: JoAnn Autry, M.S.W.

Utah State University’s program consists of a coordinated prevention 

program and judicial process for students who violate the student code 

related to alcohol and other drugs. Participating in the referral of 

student violators are campus departments—including housing, athletics, and university police—as well as faculty, staff, and the city courts. 

Student violators participate in a six-week, peer-led group that includes 

self-assessment, self-discovery, self-monitoring, and self-management 

exercises; behavioral skills training; content-oriented alcohol and other 

drug education; relationship building; and hands-on activities. The 

purpose of the group is to reduce the likelihood of the student being 

involved in violating the university’s alcohol or other drug policy in the 

future. An important component of the sessions is information to 

correct students’ misperceptions of the extent of alcohol use by their 

peers and of how their peers regard heavy drinking behavior. Of 364 

students who participated in the program over a seven-year period, only 

six students were involved in repeat violations after completing the 

skills-building group. Another measure of the program’s effectiveness is 

the recruitment of past participants to become part of the peer facilitation team. Currently 90 percent of the peer team were referred into the 

system, completed their obligation, and then made enough change in 

their behavior that they were able to sign a professional ethics contract 

limiting their alcohol intake to no more than three drinks per occasion 

and to zero if they are underage. Like all peer facilitators, they receive 

extensive ongoing training and supervision.
Alcohol and Other Drug Prevention on College Campuses Model Programs

382005 Award Recipient

Virginia Commonwealth University

Richmond, VirginiA 

Changing Perceptions with the 

“Click” of a Button

Project Team: Linda Hancock, Ph.D., Katherine Vatalaro Hill, M.P.H., Amanda 

Wattenmaker, M.P.H., Jim Hardiman, L.C.S.W., and Tammy McKeown, M.S.

The Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) Offi ce of Health 

Promotion implements a multilayered alcohol and other drug program 

that focuses on prevention, early intervention, and treatment and referral. The annual needs assessment using the National College Health 

Assessment (NCHA) drives the program and serves as the foundation 

of the prevention component, a campuswide social norms marketing campaign. Between 2002 and 2004, this campaign was associated 

with a 19 percent increase in healthy perceptions about drinking (i.e., 

the perception that VCU students have only 0–4 drinks with alcohol 

per outing). Intervention services include a personalized online assessment that utilizes VCU NCHA data to provide personalized feedback 

on alcohol and other drug use and norms. Individual counseling and a 

relapse prevention group are also available. 

In an effort to maximize healthy alcohol and other drug perceptions, 

this grant funding allowed VCU to conduct research on small-group 

social norming with all of its athletics teams and fi rst-year orientation 

classes using “clickers.” Clickers are audience response systems that provide immediate anonymous feedback to participants. Materials related 

to VCU’s projects are available free at http://www.yourstrategy.org and 

include PowerPoint presentations with instructor notes and information 

on clicker systems. During the grant period, hands-on experience using 

clickers was provided at six national conferences, reaching over 1,000 

campus professionals. Preliminary fi ndings show that a 20-minute intervention enhanced by the use of clickers was associated with a 30 percent 

increase in students believing that “most VCU students drink 0-4 drinks 

when they go out.” 
Model Programs

3

2000 A

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Washington State University

Pullman, Washington

Project Culture Change–Greek 

System

Project Directors: John A. Miller, M.S., M.Ed., and Jeanne M. Far, Ph.D.

Washington State University (WSU) has implemented Project Culture 

Change—Greek System, a program using small-group, norms-challenging interventions. Developed in 1988, piloted in 1991, and implemented and researched in 1995-96 and 1998-2000, the university’s 

model is designed to reduce alcohol abuse in selected high-consuming 

populations. The project aims to correct misperceptions of student 

alcohol use among students living in fraternities and sororities through 

45-minute small-group interventions led by trained chapter presidents. 

The student leader presents previously collected campus-wide and 

group-specifi c data about student alcohol use and attitudes, elicits 

discussion regarding typical behavior, and responds to questions. Survey 

data gathered before and after the presentations indicate signifi cant 

decreases in quantity of drinks per occasion and increases in accurate 

perceptions of student drinking attitudes and behaviors among students 

belonging to fraternities and sororities and among WSU students as a 

whole. At WSU, the number of students having fi ve or more drinks per 

occasion decreased from 58.7 percent in 1991 to 34.8 percent in 1999. 

Moderate drinking increased from 29.7 percent in 1991 to 48.5 percent 

in 1999. Students choosing to abstain from alcohol use increased 

from 11.6 percent in 1991 to 17.4 percent in 1995, and stayed constant 

in 1999.
Alcohol and Other Drug Prevention on College Campuses Model Programs

402000 Award Recipient

Western Washington University

Bellingham, Washington

“WE CAN Works”: A Model, 

Multi-Tiered, Social-Norms Project 

Project Director: Patricia M. Fabiano, Ph.D.

Western Washington University’s “WE CAN Works” is an alcohol 

prevention initiative that utilizes three different strategies to alter 

social norms on campus and in the surrounding community. First, 

this program developed, market tested, implemented, and evaluated 

a mass media campaign about actual campus drinking norms, involving media such as campus newspaper advertisements, posters, bulletin 

board displays, and radio. In 1998, one year after implementation of 

the mass media campaign, students reported a 20 percent decrease in 

high-risk alcohol consumption. Second, the project works with heavy 

alcohol users who have violated campus policy, giving them information 

comparing their own quantity of alcohol consumption, consequences of 

consumption, and perceptions of consumption with that of other students on campus. Of the students required to attend this Social-Norms 

Risk Reduction program between 1997 and 1999, 62 percent reported 

reducing their typical number of drinks by one or two drinks per occasion. Third, the project gave key campus and community opinion leaders a more accurate and positive perception of student contributions and 

behavior. As coalition members’ opinions and focus shifted, they were 

better able to see students as part of the solution rather than simply as 

part of the problem. 
The Department of Education's mission is to promote student

achievement and preparation for global competitiveness by

fostering educational excellence and ensuring equal ac c e s s .

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