[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 21 (Thursday, March 5, 1998)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1461-S1462]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SENATE RESOLUTION--192--EXPRESSING THE SENSE OF THE SENATE TO CHANGE
THE CULTURE OF ALCOHOL CONSUMPTION ON COLLEGE CAMPUSES
Mr. BIDEN submitted the following resolution; which was referred to
the Committee on Labor and Human Resources:
S. Res. 192
Whereas many college presidents rank alcohol abuse as the
number one problem on campus;
Whereas alcohol is a factor in the 3 leading causes of
death for individuals aged 15 through 24 (accidents,
homicides, and suicides);
Whereas more than any other group, college students tend to
consume large numbers of drinks in rapid succession with the
intention of becoming drunk;
Whereas 84 percent of college students report drinking
alcohol during the school year, with 44 percent of all
college students qualifying as binge drinkers and 19 percent
of all college students qualifying as frequent binge
drinkers;
Whereas alcohol is involved in a large percentage of all
campus rapes, violent crimes, student suicides, and
fraternity hazing accidents;
Whereas heavy alcohol consumption on college campuses can
result in drunk driving crashes, hospitalization for alcohol
overdoses, trouble with police, injury, missed classes, and
academic failure;
Whereas the second-hand effects of student alcohol
consumption range from assault, property damage, and unwanted
sexual advances, to interruptions in study or sleep, or
having to ``babysit'' another student who drank too much; and
Whereas campus binge drinking can also lead to the death of
our Nation's young and promising students: Now, therefore, be
it
Resolved,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This resolution may be cited as ``The Collegiate Initiative
To Reduce Binge Drinking Resolution''.
SEC. 2. SENSE OF THE SENATE.
It is the sense of the Senate that, in an effort to change
the culture of alcohol consumption on college campuses, all
institutions of higher education should carry out the
following:
[[Page S1462]]
(1) The president of the institution should appoint a task
force consisting of school administrators, faculty, students,
Greek system representatives, and others to conduct a full
examination of student and academic life at the institution.
The task force should make recommendations for a broad range
of policy and program changes that would serve to reduce
alcohol and other drug-related problems. The institution
should provide resources to assist the task force in
promoting the campus policies and proposed environmental
changes that have been identified.
(2) The institution should provide maximum opportunities
for students to live in an alcohol-free environment and to
engage in stimulating, alcohol-free recreational and leisure
activities.
(3) The institution should enforce a ``zero tolerance''
policy on the illegal consumption of alcohol by its students
and should take steps to reduce the opportunities for
students, faculty, staff, and alumni to legally consume
alcohol on campus.
(4) The institution should vigorously enforce its code of
disciplinary sanctions for those who violate campus alcohol
policies. Students with alcohol or other drug-related
problems should be referred to an on-campus counseling
program.
(5) The institution should adopt a policy of eliminating
alcoholic beverage-related sponsorship of on-campus
activities. The institution should adopt policies limiting
the advertisement and promotion of alcoholic beverages on
campus.
(6) Recognizing that school-centered policies on alcohol
will be unsuccessful if local businesses sell alcohol to
underage or intoxicated students, the institution should form
a ``Town/Gown'' alliance with community leaders. That
alliance should encourage local commercial establishments
that promote or sell alcoholic beverages to curtail illegal
student access to alcohol and adopt responsible alcohol
marketing and service practices.
Mr. BIDEN. Mr. President, over the last two days we have been
debating in the Senate various amendments aimed at curbing drunk
driving--a devastating byproduct of alcohol consumption. Today, I want
to raise another alcohol-related issue--that of drinking on college
campuses.
In recent years, we have all heard the stories about college students
who are dying because of alcohol. A drunk student falls out of a dorm
window in Virginia. Students from Massachusetts to Mississippi die of
alcohol poisoning--drinking so much so fast that the alcohol literally
kills them. In fact, so far this academic year, there have been at
least 17 college students who have died in binge drinking incidents.
Unfortunately, this is not an isolated minority of college students.
According to surveys, 44 percent of college students are binge
drinkers, and nearly one in every five college students is a frequent
binge drinker. This is not what parents expect when they send their
kids off to college.
It is time for the culture on college campuses to change.
So, today, I am submitting a sense-of-the-Senate resolution calling
on college and university administrators to carry out activities to
reduce alcohol consumption on college campuses. This resolution--the
Collegiate Initiative to Reduce Binge Drinking--was first submitted in
the other body by Mr. Kennedy of Massachusetts. I want to commend him
for his initiative, and thank him for allowing me to join in this
effort.
Specifically, the resolution calls on colleges and universities to
appoint a task force to establish a policy on reducing alcohol and
other drug-related problems; provide students with the opportunity to
live in an alcohol-free environment; enforce a zero tolerance policy on
the consumption of alcohol by minors; and eliminate alcoholic beverage-
related sponsorship of on-campus activities. It also encourages
colleges to work with local officials in the town in which they are
located.
These activities are very similar to what is happening now at my
state's largest college--the University of Delaware--which, according
to a study by Harvard University, has had a binge drinking rate 50
percent higher than the national average. But, Mr. President, under the
direction of the University's President, David P. Roselle--along with a
grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation--the University is
actively seeking to reduce this rate and to reduce alcohol consumption
on campus. So far, it appears to be working. In just one year--from
October 1996 to October 1997--there were 30 fewer alcohol-related
incidents on campus.
The lesson is that if we take the problem seriously and seriously
address the problem, we can make a difference. The lives of students
can be saved. I ask my colleagues to join me in encouraging college
administrators to step up to the challenge--before the problem gets any
worse.
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