[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 136 (Friday, October 8, 1999)]
[Senate]
[Pages S12316-S12317]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              KEEPING ALCOHOL OFF CAMPUS AND ON THE SHELF

  Mr. BYRD. Mr. President, over the years, the culture of college has 
gradually changed from one of academics and concentrated study to one 
consumed with partying. Gathering at the library with classmates to 
prepare for an exam has taken a back seat to sitting around swilling 
beers at keg parties or ordering a round of shots at the closest bar.
  Sadly, the process does not always begin in college. Often times, 
experimentation with alcohol begins in high school, or even earlier. 
Large numbers of young people are drinking. According to the 1998 
Monitoring the Future Study conducted by the University of Michigan, 
approximately thirty-three percent of high school seniors, twenty-one 
percent of tenth graders, and eight percent of eighth graders reported 
being drunk at least once in a given month. Yes, Mr. President, drunk.
  With such startling statistics at the pre-college level, it has 
become increasingly important for institutions of higher education to 
take an even more active role in informing and educating highly 
impressionable, yet extremely vulnerable, college freshmen about the 
many dangers of this practice. Last year, I added a provision to the 
Higher Education Act Amendments of 1998 to establish a National 
Recognition Awards program to identify a select number of colleges and 
universities with innovative and effective alcohol and drug prevention 
programs in place on campus. Under the program, each award recipient 
receives a grant ranging from $40,000 to $75,000 to assist in the 
continuation of its important efforts. I am pleased that I was able to 
obtain $850,000 in the Senate's Fiscal Year 2000 Departments of Labor, 
Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies 
Appropriations bill to continue funding for this important initiative.
  The U.S. Department of Education has recently named seven colleges 
and universities as recipients of this first-ever grant award. Mr. 
President, it is encouraging to know that institutions of higher 
education from all corners of the country are taking aim at the problem 
of alcohol abuse among our nation's youth through new and creative 
approaches.
  The six recipients of this award include Bowling Green State 
University at Bowling Green, Ohio; Hobart and William Smith College at 
Geneva, New York; the University of Arizona at Tucson, Arizona; 
Pennsylvania State University at University Park, Pennsylvania; the 
University of Northern Colorado at Greeley, Colorado; the University of 
Missouri at Columbia, Missouri; and Utah State University at Logan, 
Utah. The Bowling Green State University Peer-Based Misperception 
program, for example, is designed to change attitudes, behaviors, and 
the campus social environment with an emphasis on first-year students, 
members of Greek fraternal organizations, and athletes. This program 
incorporates small group survey research to uncover and dispel 
misperceptions among peer groups such as a sorority, fraternity, 
athletic team, or members of a residence hall. Award funds will be used 
to continue the program, to implement it at other institutions, and to 
reduce the overall binge drinking rate.
  Pennsylvania State University has been recognized for its alcohol-
free ``HUB Late Night'' program, a model alternative activity program 
offering students multiple forms of free entertainment as a means of 
curbing high-risk drinking. The goals of the program involve delivering 
quality entertainment, providing a variety of alcohol-free programs for 
a diverse student body, encouraging student involvement in designing 
and implementing programs, and increasing awareness of the program. 
Approximately 71 percent of participants reported that participation in 
this program resulted in less drinking for themselves and for other 
students.
  I am pleased that a higher education institution in my state, West 
Virginia University (WVU), has adopted an approach similar to that at 
Pennsylvania State University in addressing alcohol abuse among 
students. West Virginia University recently created the WVUp All Night 
program which each Thursday, Friday, and Saturday night offers students 
concerts, games, movies, free food, and study rooms as attractive 
alternatives to bars and nightclubs. According to WVU President David 
Hardesty, the program has been a great success from the start, 
attracting an average of 4,000 students each Thursday, Friday, and 
Saturday night.
  While this grant program will certainly serve these seven schools 
well in providing them with the means to administer and expand their 
prevention programs, it is my true hope that this grant program will 
span far beyond dollars and cents. Soon, the Department of Education 
will be producing a publication highlighting these model programs, and 
will make this document available to high school counselors throughout 
the nation. When thinking about college, it is important for students 
and parents alike to be informed about good alcohol and drug prevention 
programs. This document will serve as an important tool in helping 
students and their parents to make even wiser decisions about where to 
pursue their college education.
  Moreover, the grant recipients of this year's award ought to serve as 
models to all higher education institutions throughout the country. 
Each August, many schools face the formidable challenge of determining 
how best to address the use and abuse of alcohol by underage students. 
With these model schools, new information will be available to schools 
still grappling with alcohol abuse problems. I encourage all Senators 
to pass along this information to institutions of higher education in 
their respective states.

[[Page S12317]]

  Mr. President, this program will only begin to touch upon some of the 
fundamental areas which must be addressed in halting alcohol from 
rearing its evil head on other vulnerable college campuses. The work 
now lies ahead for all schools to endorse these noteworthy approaches 
and ideas which are working on select campuses throughout the United 
States. Let these seven schools be models for all institutions of 
higher education today and in the future. I congratulate the awardees 
of the program, and look forward to a strong, prosperous future for all 
college-going students, a future that is free from alcohol and other 
drugs.
  Mr. President, I yield the floor.

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