Michael Haines, a national expert on campus substance abuse, will participate in several panels and presentations on the CU-Boulder campus, Friday, April 18.
His visit is co-sponsored by CU-Boulder聮s 聯A Matter of Degree聰 Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Grant, the Kappa Alpha Order fraternity and the Alcohol Education Committee of the campus Housing Department.
Haines is coordinator of the Health Enhancement Services at Northern Illinois University. He is noted for his research showing that moderate alcohol consumption is the standard for many college students.
Research has shown that college students consistently overestimate both the number of their peers who drink heavily and their acceptance of drunken behavior. Haines advocates a strategy of educating students that the norms of student drinking typically are moderate, which brings peer pressure on the heavy drinkers to reduce their alcohol consumption to less risky levels.
Haines believes that colleges should try to reduce excessive alcohol consumption among students by launching media campaigns emphasizing that binge drinking is not the norm.
Friday聮s events include a discussion on 聯Getting Students Involved: Keys to Changing Norms to Reduce High Risk Drinking聰 from 9:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. in the Koenig Alumni Center. Haines will make a presentation during a panel discussion with members of the Greek system and campus and local media from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. on 聯Greeks, Alcohol and the Media.聰 The program will be in Chemistry 140.
Both events are free and open to the public.