Advancing alcohol awareness
Drunk driving simulator, 'Jail and Bail' planned for week
DJ Slater
Issue date: 10/18/04 Section: Campus News
Throughout each semester, UW-Eau Claire hosts numerous weeks which revolve around a central theme.
After last year's Alcohol Awareness Week, Jodi Thesing-Ritter, associate dean of Student Development and Diversity, said administrators and students discussed ideas for improvement to gain more students and raise awareness.
"This year's committee worked really hard to try some new things," Thesing-Ritter said. "Hopefully they'll be successful."
The new things she refers to are the various events that aim to be more interactive to generate student interest during Alcohol Awareness Week, which began Sunday and runs through Saturday.
"Being interactive is one of the things to ... engage students that don't necessarily require them to come to an event," she said. "We also want to focus on drinking and driving because it's a topic that we've identified as a problem on our campus."
According to a CORE survey, 37 percent of students at Eau Claire admitted to driving while under the influence in the past 30 days.
One event that will show the effects of drunk driving is the drunk driving simulator, which takes place from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday on Campus Mall.
Jennifer Lee, interim assistant director of Housing and Residence Life, said the event will provide students with a video simulator of driving a car. As participants progress, she said, drinks are added to impair their ability to drive safely.
Another new event on Wednesday, Jail and Bail, will raise money for Sacred Heart and Luther hospitals and the SWAT Team to support alcohol-related issues. During the event, students and faculty will be arrested by University Police and locked behind a fence on Campus Mall, Thesing-Ritter said. After they are arrested, she said, the only way to "bail them out" is to donate money. Students will be released for $10 while $20 releases faculty.
"The goal of that is to remind people that there are consequences to your actions," said sophomore Chris Wagner, president of United Hall Council. "If you get caught doing something you shouldn't have been doing, that's what's going to happen to you."
Today, students will be on Campus Mall from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. for the Day to Remember event, which features real-life stories of alcohol-related deaths and students wearing shirts addressing alcohol concerns.
Nine university groups sponsor the event, which range from University Recreation to the Student Athlete Advisory Committee.
"I think it's phenomenal that we're all collaborating," Thesing-Ritter said. "This is an issue that we all feel very strongly about and want to make a difference about."
After last year's Alcohol Awareness Week, Jodi Thesing-Ritter, associate dean of Student Development and Diversity, said administrators and students discussed ideas for improvement to gain more students and raise awareness.
"This year's committee worked really hard to try some new things," Thesing-Ritter said. "Hopefully they'll be successful."
The new things she refers to are the various events that aim to be more interactive to generate student interest during Alcohol Awareness Week, which began Sunday and runs through Saturday.
"Being interactive is one of the things to ... engage students that don't necessarily require them to come to an event," she said. "We also want to focus on drinking and driving because it's a topic that we've identified as a problem on our campus."
According to a CORE survey, 37 percent of students at Eau Claire admitted to driving while under the influence in the past 30 days.
One event that will show the effects of drunk driving is the drunk driving simulator, which takes place from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday on Campus Mall.
Jennifer Lee, interim assistant director of Housing and Residence Life, said the event will provide students with a video simulator of driving a car. As participants progress, she said, drinks are added to impair their ability to drive safely.
Another new event on Wednesday, Jail and Bail, will raise money for Sacred Heart and Luther hospitals and the SWAT Team to support alcohol-related issues. During the event, students and faculty will be arrested by University Police and locked behind a fence on Campus Mall, Thesing-Ritter said. After they are arrested, she said, the only way to "bail them out" is to donate money. Students will be released for $10 while $20 releases faculty.
"The goal of that is to remind people that there are consequences to your actions," said sophomore Chris Wagner, president of United Hall Council. "If you get caught doing something you shouldn't have been doing, that's what's going to happen to you."
Today, students will be on Campus Mall from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. for the Day to Remember event, which features real-life stories of alcohol-related deaths and students wearing shirts addressing alcohol concerns.
Nine university groups sponsor the event, which range from University Recreation to the Student Athlete Advisory Committee.
"I think it's phenomenal that we're all collaborating," Thesing-Ritter said. "This is an issue that we all feel very strongly about and want to make a difference about."
| Monday: 8 a.m. - 5 p.m. Campus Mall. A Day To Remember. 11:45 a.m. - 12:15 p.m. Open Mic 6:30-10:30 p.m. McPhee. Climbing Wall Tuesday: 10:30 a.m. - 2 p.m. between Zorn and Schneider. Car Smash. $1 per swing, $7 for 10. 4:30 p.m. Steak Night by Sodexho. 6:30-10:30 p.m. McPhee. Climbing Wall Wednesday: All day - Jail & Bail, Campus Mall. 11 a.m. - 5 p.m. campus mall. Drunk Driving Simulator. 8 p.m., The Cabin, Jazz at Night. 6:30-10:30 p.m. McPhee. Climbing Wall Thursday: 8 p.m. The Cabin. NOTA Open Prose and Poetry Reading. 8-11 p.m., Higherground, Virgin Bourbon Street & Casino Night. 6:30-10:30 p.m. McPhee. Climbing Wall Friday: 8 p.m. The Cabin, Open Stage 10 p.m. - 4 a.m. Late Night Eau Claire, register at Hilltop Recreation Center. $10 per person 12-6 a.m. BBC, After Hour Billiard Tournament Saturday: 7-11 p.m. Olson 199, Dodgeball (movie) screening. 8-11 p.m. McPhee 210, Dodgeball Tournament. Climbing Wall and Pool. 8 p.m. The Cabin, Local Talent. |