Green Bean campaign raises alcohol awareness
USU Student Health Services is using green beans to catch people’s eyes and help draw attention to the annual National Collegiate Alcohol Awareness Week in light of a school year that started out rocky for alcohol misuse among some students.
“If your friend was eating six cans of green beans every day, would you question him about it?” said Ryan Barfuss, prevention specialist at the Student Wellness Center. “Would you question your friend if he was drinking a six-pack of beer everyday?”
Barfuss said the goal of the Green Bean Campaign, which launched Oct. 10 with cans displayed in the Taggart Student Center, is to build awareness among students and prepare them if a friend has a drinking problem. The campaign leads up to National Collegiate Alcohol Awareness Week, Oct. 24-26.
Planned activities include educational booths in the TSC International Lounge, a beer-goggle obstacle course and what Barfuss said is an “impairment go-kart” track on the TSC Patio, which Barfuss said simulates driving under the influence of alcohol.
“It has a delayed setting on it so when you turn, it doesn’t turn till about a second later, and then it’ll turn,” Barfuss said. “When you go to stop, it won’t quite stop when you want it to. It just gives you the feeling of driving under the influence.”
Education is the main purpose of this activity, Barfuss said. Students must listen to a short presentation about the effects of drinking and driving before actually using the go-kart.
If a friend has a “green bean problem,” students should take action, Barfuss said.
“Be a good bystander and do something about it,” Barfuss said. “If you have a friend that is drinking too much, get them some help.”
Alcohol misuse on campus and among students was more frequent at the beginning this school year than others, said Whitney Milligan, director of Housing and Residence Life.
“It started out heavy,” Milligan said. “There were quite a few more in the first couple of weeks than we usually experience.”
Barfuss, who facilitates alcohol counseling and education sessions, said, “This year has been one of the tougher years that I’ve been involved in just because it started out so fast.”
A 19-year-old male was taken to Logan Regional Hospital by ambulance when discovered intoxicated on the steps of the Living Learning Center Sept. 2. A 17-year-old girl was also rushed to the hospital from the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity house Sept. 25, because she had alcohol poisoning. Several other less serious incidents have also been reported this year.
The percentage of USU students who drink is lower than the national average, Barfuss said, and the proportion of binge drinkers is even lower. According to a survey taken last spring, 18 percent of USU students drink, six percent of them being binge drinkers. In contrast, the national average reflected an 80 percent proportion of college students who drink, 44 percent of them being binge drinkers.
Still, having fewer drinkers doesn’t eliminate alcohol problems on campus altogether, Barfuss said. The majority of students who come to his office for mandatory counseling are underage, he added.
USU Police Captain Steve Milne said alcohol activity usually starts out high at the beginning of the school year among younger students. Many people are living away from home for the first time and their parents are not around, he said, so they engage in risky behavior.
Milligan said younger students may not understand the impact alcohol has on them due to lack of experience.
Employing the “zero-one-two-three rule” should help students drink responsibly, Barfuss said. Zero drinks if underage, pregnant, on medication or on campus, he said. One drink an hour, two in one sitting and no more than three a day.
Always have a plan, Barfuss added. Avoid drinking games, and don’t drink what you haven’t seen opened or prepared, he said, and have a designated driver.
“That keeps students who drink at low risk,” he said.
– la.stewart@aggiemail.usu.edu