They will find a sub-culture on and around campus that will encourage all-out partying and binge drinking and where they will find, even if they are underaged, alcoholic beverages cheap if not free.
Some will die trying to keep up.
Each each as students return to campus, the news articles begin hitting the wire services and our Tragic Tales of the Day page, concerning deaths caused by drinking on campus.
Someone will fall out of a window, or over a balcony, get killed in a car wreck, or simply die from acute alcohol poisoning.
Cheap Beer, More Problems
"Easily obtainable cheap alcohol, especially beer, fuels binge drinking for underage college students," said Henry Wechsler, PhD, lead author of a recent study on college drinking and Director of College Alcohol Studies at the Harvard School of Public Health.The underage students surveyed, most of whom reported that it was "easy" or "very easy" to obtain alcohol, were more likely to obtain alcohol inexpensively and more likely to drink in private settings such as dorms and fraternity parties.
Underage students were also significantly more likely to experience alcohol-related problems, such as engaging in unplanned sexual activity, damaging property, injuring themselves, getting into trouble with police, being treated for alcohol overdose, doing something they later regretted, or forgetting their actions, according to the study.
Awareness Programs
Many colleges have banned alcohol at public events, some sororities and fraternities have decided to become alcohol free, police in college towns are taking a zero-tolerance approach to drunk driving by underage students, and yet still the problem continues.One recent anti-drinking campaign on college campuses was an educational effort to send the message to the "party" students that most of their peers do not think getting drunk until you puke is acceptable behavior. Those who are binge drinking think "everybody does it" but that's simply not the case.
These recent articles demonstrate efforts to heighten awareness of the continued problem of drinking at college:
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Changing the Culture
The dangers of the college drinking culture are more widespread and more destructive than has been reported in the media and understood by the public, according to two recently released research studies.
Alcohol Disorders Among College Students
A new study shows that six percent of college students meet criteria for a diagnosis of alcohol dependence (also referred to as alcoholism), and 31 percent meet the clinical criteria for alcohol abuse.
Spring Break Alert
Spring break is no longer an innocent respite from the rigors of college academics, it's potentially life threatening, according to the American Medical Association.
Recovery Month
Each year the National Alcohol and Drug Addiction Recovery Month is scheduled for September, when students across the nation are returning to class -- not only at colleges, but high schools and middle schools also.The program has been developed by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration's Center for Substance Abuse Treatment to help promote the importance and effectiveness of substance abuse treatment and the benefits of getting help for adolescents with alcohol and substance abuse problems.
"Never in our nation's history have alcohol and so many illicit drugs been so widely available to our youth," the SAMSHA news release said. "In fact, in 1999 more than half of our nation's 12th graders reported that they have tried an illicit drug, and more than one-quarter have tried a drug other than marijuana. And, although the consumption of alcohol is illegal for those under 21 years of age, more than 10 million current drinkers are age 12 to 20."
The crackdown will continue, warnings will be issued, educational materials given out, but the party on U.S. campuses will continue, and unfortunately for some the results will be an early and tragic death.
