ACC begins implementing strategic plan on high-risk drinking

The Alcohol Coalition Committee (ACC), a group of students, faculty and staff appointed last year to address high-risk drinking among undergraduates, is continuing its work this year.

The ACC is collaborating with key University offices through small working groups and executive teams to begin to focus on the initiatives proposed in the strategic plan this past May. One group already has reviewed and revised the alcohol education program for first-year student orientation, which culminated in a pilot project that it launched this fall in two of the residential colleges.

The committee also produced a brochure that was distributed to all freshmen, encouraging their participation on the committee and their attention to high-risk drinking. In addition to forming working groups, plans for the year include organizing a campus-wide workshop for this fall on the intersections among alcohol, policy, enforcement, and discipline. In the spring, the ACC will sponsor a two-day seminar, inviting Princeton's Ivy League colleagues to discuss best practices in addressing high-risk drinking and the culture of high-risk drinking on campus.

"We have an ambitious agenda for the year, but we also have a very enthusiastic group of students, faculty and staff on the ACC, the working groups and the executive teams," said Amy Campbell, director of campus life initiatives, who is co-chairing the ACC with senior Elizabeth Dilday.

Dilday added, "We strongly encourage all interested Princetonians to get involved."

The ACC strategic plan called for the creation of working groups and executive teams to review, discuss and make recommendations on discrete issues and ideas that were identified in workshops held last spring and outlined in the plan. Each group and team will be co-chaired by an ACC faculty or staff member and an ACC student and will include five to seven ACC members and an additional four to six members of the University community -- faculty, staff and students. The co-chairs periodically will report back to the full ACC, providing updates and the opportunity for the ACC to give feedback and make suggestions.

The working groups, as designed by the strategic plan, will collaborate with the "owners" of the project area on program, event or policy suggestions to address high-risk drinking. The working groups will also engage the "stakeholders" -- those impacted by the project -- for their input, suggestions and knowledge. The process will conclude with a report to the ACC and the primary stakeholders with recommendations on the specific topic or initiative.

Three working groups have been formed: one on party registration that will investigate, review and make suggestions on implementing a party registration policy initially for "of-age" student parties and then for mixed-age parties; one on education that will focus its attention on pre-gaming, on dispelling myths associated with medical treatment and on pre-orientation freshman alcohol education; and one on activities and structures to address pre-gaming by creating strong partnerships with campus offices, departments and organizations to support programs, events and other activities that can help counter a pre-gaming culture. The latter group also will begin to investigate the appropriate process and stakeholders to determine the viability of a campus pub.

Two executive teams will be responsible for planning the fall workshop and the spring seminar. The workshop is scheduled for Friday, Dec. 5, and will follow the format of the workshops the ACC successfully conducted this past spring to gather information for the strategic plan. These featured a speaker, and included break-out sessions to encourage discussion in small groups.

The spring seminar is planned for Thursday and Friday, April 2-3. It will focus on collaborative learning and provide opportunities to engage colleagues in a conversation that will include students, faculty and staff from peer institutions.

Members of the ACC will be distributing information about the Dec. 5 workshop and will be available to answer questions at the FluFest and Cirque de Santé from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday, Nov. 5-6, in the Frist Campus Center Multipurpose Rooms.

Student members of this year's ACC, in addition to Dilday, are: undergraduates Giovanna Campagna, Juan Candela, Jacob Candelaria, Chris Chandler, Helen Chen, Mike Coolbaugh, Daniel Dickerson, Laurie Frey, Kate Gilman, Christina Hummel, Reilly Kiernan, Cole Morris, Agatha Offorjebe, Christine Prifti and Harry Schiff; and Kellam Conover, a resident graduate student in Butler College.

Faculty and staff members of the ACC, in addition to Campbell, are: Gina Abrams, director for health promotion and wellness services in University Health Services; Marguerite Browning, associate professor of linguistics and master of Wilson College; Janet Finnie, interim executive director of University Health Services; Rebecca Graves-Bayazitoglu, dean of Whitman College; Hilary Herbold, associate dean of undergraduate students; Drew Adair, director of student life for Rockefeller College; Charles Davall, deputy director for operations in the Department of Public Safety; Matt Frawley, director of student life for Mathey College; Matt Kinsey, associate director for planning and administration in the Office of the Executive Vice President; Sanjeev Kulkarni, professor of electrical engineering and master of Butler College; Matthew Lazen, director of studies for Butler College; Bill Tierney, head men's lacrosse coach in the Department of Athletics; Ruth Stevens, executive editor in the Office of Communications; and Karen Woodbridge, director of community relations in the Office of Community and Regional Affairs.

More information, including the names of the working group and executive team co-chairs, is available on the ACC website or by e-mailing acc@princeton.edu.