Tufts Community Union Senate

A Resolution in Support of a Healthy Alcohol Strategy for Tufts

WHEREAS drinking at Tufts has reached dangerous levels, as evidenced by increased severity
of Tufts Emergency Medical Services (TEMS) alcohol-related calls; and

WHEREAS in the 2001 Tufts Alcohol Study, “The majority of respondents (60.2%) knew
someone who had been hospitalized or transported to the hospital because of alcohol use at
Tufts”1; and

WHEREAS the 2001 Tufts Alcohol Study found that, “Two-thirds (67%) of all Tufts students
drink alcohol one or fewer times in a typical week”2; and

WHEREAS the 2001 Tufts Alcohol Study further found that Tufts students have highly distorted
perceptions of social norms regarding alcohol consumption3; and

WHEREAS “social norms” marketing has been convincingly shown to reduce dangerous
drinking behavior4; and

WHEREAS in the 2001 Tufts Alcohol Study, “one in three respondents (33.8%) said they feel
either overt or subtle pressure from others to drink”5; and

WHEREAS abusive alcohol consumption can impact not only the partaker, but can also have
adverse consequences on other students, such as through sexual assault6; and

WHEREAS individual alcohol intervention strategies, such as the Brief Alcohol Screening and
Intervention for College Students (BASICS) program have been shown to be effective in
changing dangerous drinking behavior7; and

WHEREAS students often have incomplete information about the signs of alcohol abuse,
including but not limited to alcohol poisoning and alcohol dependency; and

1
http://ase.tufts.edu/healthservice/documents/Alcoholstudy.pdf
2
ibid
3
http://ase.tufts.edu/healthservice/documents/Alcoholstudy.pdf
4
http://www.higheredcenter.org/research/declining-negative-consequences-related-alcohol-misuse-among-students
5
http://ase.tufts.edu/healthservice/documents/Alcoholstudy.pdf
6
http://pubs.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/arh25-1/43-51.pdf
7
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1797804/

Respectfully submitted on 8 November 2009 by Bruce H. Ratain, Jonathan Danzig, Yulia

Korovikov, Chas Morrison, Wyatt Cadley, Noble J. Dilday
 Tufts Community Union Senate

A Resolution in Support of a Healthy Alcohol Strategy for Tufts

WHEREAS the 2001 Tufts Alcohol Study recommended, “A positive health and safety
approach…rather than a negative punishment approach, should undergird the plan”, noting that
“Some researchers suggest that ‘college students are motivated by positive messages that align
with their values. They tend to be less responsive to rule-based approaches than to positive
visions of their role’”8; and

WHEREAS data from the study shows that “ first year drinkers drink more heavily (in amount
consumed) than do seniors”9; and

WHEREAS concerns have been raised that the new policy makes students increasingly averse to
calling TEMS, and the 2001 Tufts Alcohol Study found that “A number of students reported
having friends ask them not to call TEMS for fear of both unfounded and actual repercussions.
This pressure not to call TEMS creates a situation in which a student could be in serious danger
but not receive immediate assistance that might mitigate harm” 10 ; and

WHEREAS Tufts lacks late-night weekend programming, as evidenced both from a cursory
examination of scheduled events11, and from concerns raised by non-drinking students; therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED that student safety, and changing dangerous drinking behavior, be the
primary goals of any alcohol policy; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Tufts Community Union (TCU) Senate concurs with the
assertion made in the 2001 Tufts Alcohol Study that “If Tufts' goal is to create a healthy campus
environment, then students cannot feel discouraged from calling TEMS”12; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the TCU Senate calls for the revision of the current alcohol
policy such that, for a first alcohol offense, a student will be placed on probation-1 unless the
student completes the Brief Alcohol Screening and Intervention for College Students (BASICS)
program with the Director of Health Education; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the TCU Senate also calls for the further revision of the
current alcohol policy such that, for a second alcohol offense, the student will automatically be
placed on probation-1 and shall be required to meet with the Judicial Affairs Officer and the
Director of Health Education for an evaluation, with potential additional measures to be taken as

8
http://ase.tufts.edu/healthservice/documents/Alcoholstudy.pdf
9
ibid
10
ibid
11
www.tuftslife.com
12
http://ase.tufts.edu/healthservice/documents/Alcoholstudy.pdf

Respectfully submitted on 8 November 2009 by Bruce H. Ratain, Jonathan Danzig, Yulia

Korovikov, Chas Morrison, Wyatt Cadley, Noble J. Dilday
 Tufts Community Union Senate

A Resolution in Support of a Healthy Alcohol Strategy for Tufts

a result of this evaluation, including probation level 2, medical leave, further alcohol counseling,
notification of parents, or other actions deemed appropriate; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the TCU Senate advocates for a fully supported and
comprehensive social norms marketing campaign with regards to alcohol on the Tufts University
campus; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the TCU Senate calls for a reevaluation and expansion of
New Student Orientation alcohol awareness programs for incoming students, and further calls for
the consideration of increased training for Resident Assistants (RAs), Orientation Leaders (OLs),
and the leaders of Pre-Orientation groups; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the TCU Senate calls for the creation of comprehensive,
preventative educational programs outside of the New Student Orientation, with an emphasis on
educating students about: responsible drinking, the signs of alcohol poisoning, dangerous health
and social impacts of drinking; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the TCU Senate calls for increased support for students who
choose not to drink and those in recovery, to include: the creation of late night, alternate
weekend programming at Tufts to provide for viable alternatives to events at which alcohol is
present, and the consideration of designated housing for students in recovery; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the TCU Senate calls for the creation of a strategic
partnership between Greek Houses, Health Services, and Public Safety, for the purpose of
establishing increased collaboration between actors, and preserving Greek parties as safe, and
viable social events for the Tufts community, to potentially include measures such as Health
Safety Certifications for Greek members, and event registration safety meetings.

Respectfully submitted on 8 November 2009 by Bruce H. Ratain, Jonathan Danzig, Yulia

Korovikov, Chas Morrison, Wyatt Cadley, Noble J. Dilday