Alcohol Edu course causing many freshmen to re-think drinking

    Before moving on campus this fall, incoming freshmen at GCSU had already gotten a small taste of college.
    They had completed a college course called AlcoholEdu. 
    Unlike any other class they will take this semester, AlcoholEdu will not affect their grade-point average. They did not have to sit inside a classroom. AlcoholEdu is an online course to educate incoming freshmen about the dangers of alcohol.
    AlcoholEdu is a science-based, data-driven course that adjusts its content based on the student’s history with alcohol. The online program (made mandatory by GCSU last summer for the 2006 incoming freshmen class) takes about three hours to complete. It is used at more than 500 colleges in the United States.
       When students log on to AlcoholEdu for the first time, the program asks questions about their history with alcohol. These answers are kept confidential. The program then modifies the content of the lesson based on the student’s background.
     “It is designed so if someone chooses to drink then it can help them make good choices,” said Dr. Bruce Harshbarger, vice president of student affairs and dean of students. “If someone does not drink then it will help them know how to react when they are around people who do.”
    Harshbarger said the number of students who come to college with a background that involves alcohol is “very significant.” He said this number often increases during their first semester.
     With underage drinking a growing problem on some college campuses, many schools are taking additional steps to educate students about the risks involved.
    GCSU officials are not the only ones who are addressing the underage drinking problem. Before classes began this fall, city officials raised fines to more than $900 for anyone arrested for underage drinking. In addition to a mandatory court appearance, offenders must enroll in a six-week educational program on integrity and decision-making. They also must serve a six-month probation period under the new law.
     Harshbarger said underage drinking is not only a problem on college campuses but also in society.
    “I hope (AlcoholEdu) can empower most people to make mature decisions,” said Harshbarger. “Even if it doesn’t, it would at least send a message that we are very concerned about alcohol-related issues, so that message in itself is of some value.”
    Some incoming students were skeptical about taking the course.
    “It didn’t really impact my actions,” said Logan Clark, a freshman.“I thought a couple of things were interesting, but most of it was things I already knew.”
    Harshbarger said all but about a dozen freshmen had completed the AlcoholEdu course by the time they moved in. He said several had technology problems and could not access it, but had completed the course since then.
    According to a pre-survey conducted by Outside The Classroom Inc., the company that developed AlcoholEdu, 74 percent of the students indicated they were glad they took the course.
    “People need to know the warning signs of alcohol poisoning and how to tell when someone needs to stop drinking,” said Katherine Snow, a freshman.
    Clark said the program was beneficial.
     “It might not change what people do, but at least students will be educated in their decision-making and about the risks involved with drinking,” he said.
    Although some freshmen said they already knew the majority of the information covered in the program, some felt there is a need to cover the issue before going to college. Sean Romocki, a sophomore, said it would have been beneficial to take the course when he was a freshman last year.
    “I don’t think it would have changed my actions, but it definitely could have helped for some of my friends,” he said.
    Romocki said the “freedom of college makes people get a little crazy,” and he is glad first-year students were required to take such a course.
    According to Gina Peavy, executive assistant to the vice president of student affairs, there were 18 arrests involving freshmen underage drinking this August compared to 31 freshmen arrested in August 2005.
    With the numbers already showing a decrease since last fall, school officials hope the program will prove successful.
    In January, GCSU will receive pre-survey and post-survey results from AlcoholEdu.
    “We do not have any data from the year before to compare it to, so it would be hard to accurately tell if it has been successful in terms of modifying student behavior,” said Harshbarger. “It will give us some baseline data, though. We will have sent a message to students. I think that part of it is extremely valuable.”

Posted by Colonnade Archives on Sep 15 2006. Filed under News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry