<p>Mini, you are the one with the insider information. Most of the rest of us just deal with reputation, rumors and stray pieces of information. I have been on a couple of campuses where drug use was clearly prevalent and openly discussed.</p>
<p>Oh, sorry! I think there is drug use (actually, I know it). Anecdotally, at some places, maybe even more of it. But I haven't seen any displacement of alcohol, and the college coordinators in my state (that's where I have direct rather indirect info.) haven't seen that either.</p>
<p>In the population as a whole, we are seeing slightly more cocaine, slightly less methamphetamine, substantially more abuse of prescription opiates (it is showing up prominently in new high school surveys), more Ritalin abuse. Marijuana about the same. I have no idea how this will play out in the college population, except that alcohol dominates.</p>
<p>A Vassar student told me pot is the drug of choice at Vassar rather than alcohol.</p>
<p>One other thought: Also check out the availability of a substance free housing. It worked very well for my non-drinking-non-partying daughter. Just keep in mind that "sub free" means "no substances in the dorm" and not always "no partying elsewhere." Still, she's found it a great option, and she also has had no trouble finding a large group of friends who are not into partying at her school. I think most kids who are not interested in partying - whether drinking OR drugs - can find like-minded friends anywhere.</p>
<p>By the same token, a kid who's looking to party can also find like-minded friends pretty much anywhere, including officially "dry" campuses.</p>
<p>More on what some colleges are up to:</p>
<p>I know there are some isolated examples, but has there been an overall recent trend towards more aggressive enforcement of alcohol/drug policies?</p>
<p>Here is a link from the website of the US DOE 's Higher Education Center for Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse and Violence Prevention; it includes a summary of several programs that are in place at various colleges for not only prevention but also treatment of alcohol abuse. </p>
<p><a href="http://www.higheredcenter.org/ideasamplers/%5B/url%5D">http://www.higheredcenter.org/ideasamplers/</a></p>
<p>There has been at some of the big state schools - notably Oklahoma, Georgia, UMass, and, to a lesser extent, Washington. Oklahoma is now officially "dry", even if you are over 21, and the first preliminary data on that is now coming in, and is interesting to say the least!</p>
<p>I haven't seen major changes at the top 50 LACs or Unis, with the possible exception of Washington U-St. Louis (which of course has Anheuser-Busch Hall ;)). They now require AlcoholEdu for all incoming freshman, and have set up new alcohol policies on campus, restricting alcohol access at parties, and to parties (alcohol in any open container outside of a party is now clearly prohibited - and that includes dorm rooms, though enforcement is of course haphazard at best - someone who is there would be better able to comment.)</p>
<p>
[quote]
Pomona, Harvey Mudd and the other Claremont Colleges
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</p>
<p>This is not true. </p>
<p>Pitzer - may not consume very much alcohol, but a lot of weed, so yeah
Scripps - not many parties on campus, but scrippsies tend to go to CMC or Mudd a lot, plenty of them get drunk
CMC - drinks a lot of beer
Pomona - doesn't drink that much, but not below average in alcohol consumption or anything for a LAC
Mudd - extremely lax drinking policies, some people refuse to drink, but others drink a lot, a lot of drinking compared to other elite tech schools for sure</p>
<p>pmyen:</p>
<p>Both of my D's Universities required them to take a mandatory online alcohol awareness course prior to attending. I think it's pretty common for this to be mandatory at many colleges now. I suspect it's probably ultimately related to lawsuits. As Mini said though, at this age many of the students consider themselves invincible and all-knowing. I'm sure some of the material rubs off and hits home with some of the students though so it's probably worthwhile - especially since it's easy for them to take (online and doesn't require much time).</p>
<p>Forty percent of adults never drink. That means 60 percent of adults drink.</p>
<p>One of the biggest factors influencing whether your child will be a drinker, is parental drinking behavior when he is growing up. Serving wine with dinner every night is drinking.</p>
<p>According to my kids, the students in college who have the most drinking problems as Freshmen, are those who never drank in high school.</p>
<p>My husband and I never drank or had alcohol in the house until my children were in college, away from home. They did drink at parties in high school. Our big emphasis was to make sure there was a designated driver who did not drink.</p>
<p>Some schools support drinking on campus to prevent drinking and driving.</p>
<p>D's campus openned a pub on campus recently. It is highly regulated, but gives students a safe and social place to have a beer or glass of wine. It just openned in late spring, so not sure how its' working out, but D tells me that 2 id's are required; their school id cannot be counterfeited, so that about prevents the fake id thing. The school sends frequent updates to parents about campus going-ons and said "so far, so good." Maybe being realistic and teaching responsible behavior, makes sense. I am withholding judgement.</p>
<p>We have always taken a healthy approach to the issue of drinking. D was allowed to taste wine with us at dinner. Now she is a wine-snob and won't drink the dregs that most students can afford :)</p>
<p>I believe Johns Hopkins might fit what the OP is seeking. My son's experience there seems to be much less drinking than at either Bates or Tulane.</p>
<p>"Might fit" or might not.</p>
<p>The JHU 2005 task force stated: "It can be argued that alcohol use and abuse is one of the most critical issues facing colleges and universities today; Johns Hopkins University is no exception."</p>
<p>IPEDS crime stats show a high number of on campus disciplinary actions. The numbers for 2003-2005 were 518, 679, and 262. That seems high considering the small number of students who actually live on campus.</p>
<p>Other points to consider: the campus is not dry. Restrictions apply but alcohol is permitted at campus events and in the dorms. The vast majority of students are in off campus apartments where the JHU policies do not apply.</p>
<p>JHU may have less drinking than at either Bates or Tulane, but I am not sure that the published data supports that conclusion.</p>
<p>Thanks, eDad for the website. The Hopkins report is a nice template for other colleges to work from. It is a fairly aggressive policy, especially the part about suspension for a third alcohol violation within 12 months. Don't know how well it is enforced. </p>
<p>Like depression, when these infractions take place in young adults over 18, there are confidentiality issues. On the other hand, I believe in preventive health measures in both situations. Notifying family can be an important first step for ensuring the student gets the appropriate help he/she needs, and not do something that will endanger him-/herself or others.</p>
<p>I was intrigued by the question regarding drugs "supplanted" alcohol on campuses. I have no data source on a campus-by-campus basis, but the Monitoring the Future studies go back 29 years. Their findings were that drug use at colleges rose and fell in line with heavy alcohol use. In periods when heavy alcohol use was high, drug use was high, and vice versa. It doesn't tell us anything about what might happen on particular campuses, though it suggests that in periods when folks simply strive to get blitzed more often, the drug of choice might not be key issue. (though when it comes to accidents, deaths, sexual assaults, rapes, and future substance abuse problems and addiction, alcohol outstrips all other drugs by a large margin.)</p>
<p>"Like depression, when these infractions take place in young adults over 18, there are confidentiality issues."</p>
<p>Under the Cleary Act, all colleges are permitted to contact parents regarding any alcohol infringement for the dependent students. (Many colleges would not like you to know that.)</p>
<p>Has anyone seen any data correlating the rise in binge drinking on campuses with raising the legal drinking age to 21? I have a sneaking suspicion that there's a link.</p>
<p>
[quote]
Pomona - doesn't drink that much, but not below average in alcohol consumption or anything for a LAC
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Actually, I saw a reference to Pomona's binge drinking rate. If I recall, it was in the 30% to 35% range which is well below average.</p>
<p>i am new to these posts, can somebody please tell me what LAC stands for, thanks.</p>
<p>Liberal Arts College.</p>