Nursing senior Michael Quintana advises students to be aware of drinking laws.
“You wouldn’t want to be doing that and be conflicting with the law. Just try to be at home or somewhere you know [that is] safe,” Quintana said.
The Office of Student Rights and Responsibilities and the Superhero Project will host activities in observance of National Collegiate Alcohol Awareness Week today through Thursday.
The events for this week are as follows:
11 a.m.-noon today: Hot Topics on Wheels on the Paseo in Brownsville and noon to 1 p.m. on the Bronc Trail in Edinburg. Resource information pamphlets and goodie bags will be distributed across campus via decorated golf carts.
6-7 p.m.: Coffee, doughnuts and a conversation in the Casa Bella Clubhouse on the Brownsville campus. Residential Life will host a conversation where student residents will hear a panel of campus administrators discuss alcohol awareness.
6-7 p.m. Tuesday: Coffee, doughnuts and a conversation on the Edinburg campus. Location was not available at press time.
11 a.m.-1:30 p.m. Wednesday: Alcohol and Consent Awareness Fair on the Main Courtyard in Brownsville. Several campus departments will sponsor an information table, game or event that promotes various topics with a focus on alcohol, consent and responsible decision-making.
11 a.m.-1:30 p.m. Thursday: Alcohol and Consent Awareness Fair in the Student Union on the Edinburg campus.
David Marquez, assistant director of Student Rights and Responsibilities, said he hopes students who attend these events will become more aware of how alcohol can affect their lives.
“People consume alcohol and because they don’t get caught–for example, if they’re minors or they don’t end up in an accident–they feel like, ‘Well, nothing happened. I wasn’t affected,’” Marquez said. “But studies will show that they’re still affected, because it might interrupt their sleep patterns and then that has an effect on their academics in the classroom. They don’t perform as best as they could.”
UTRGV has many policies regarding alcohol, such as the Resident Housing Handbook’s Alcohol Policy section.
Possession and consumption of alcoholic beverages in university residence halls and apartments is permitted only in the assigned residence hall rooms or apartment of an assigned resident who is 21 years old or older, with several conditions.
Students can access a digital copy of the handbook for 2017 to 2018 at www.utrgv.edu/housing/en-us/resources/utrgv-resident-handbook/index.htm.
Jose Aaron Hinojosa, a student judicial affairs officer, said Alcohol Awareness Week exists because of the Jeanne Clery Act.
“There was an incident that occurred at an institution in the [1980s], so basically [Jeanne Clery] was sexually assaulted [and killed] in her residence hall room at some point at night,” Hinojosa said. “So, that brought up a lot of questions to institutions and how they communicate safety and how they prevent these things from happening. So, that pushed for more safety precautions, more policies, especially on alcohol [abuse and] sexual assault.”
Douglas Stoves, associate dean of students for Student Rights and Responsibilities, said the newest members of the campus community, especially under age 24, are required to take an online course called Alcohol Edu and those who don’t complete the course will have a hold on their transcript.
“We look to reinforce [alcohol awareness and safety] with different programs that we have,” Stoves said. “National Collegiate Alcohol Awareness Week is the time where we bring a lot of different things to focus. That’s not to say it’s the only time we talk about alcohol and being aware of its impact on our students.”
