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PLANNING AND DIAGNOSTIC GUIDE Achieving Breakthrough Progress A Systems Approach to Alcohol Prevention

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Outside The Classrooms outlines a systems approach to achieving breakthrough progress in college alcohol prevention.

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Page 1: Outside The Classroom

PLANNING AND DIAGNOStIC GuIDE

Achieving Breakthrough Progress

A Systems Approach to Alcohol Prevention

Page 2: Outside The Classroom

For decades, high-risk drinking on America’s college campuses has jeopardized our higher education system and our nation’s very future. But look around and you’ll see the signs that change is underway. Our colleges and universities are experiencing one of the greatest transformations we’ve seen in the past 30 years. Rigorous measurement of the youth drinking problem has shown some very encouraging trends.

While there is still work to be done, we are on the verge of a powerful cultural shift, driven by the rising tide of students who are interested in experiencing college life in ways that are much less—or not at all—dependent on alcohol.

We think that’s about to change.

Have you ever noticed that all of the talk about college drinking is bad news?

Page 3: Outside The Classroom

A Golden Opportunity for The Field...

Trends in student drinking behaviors are in our favor.

Some campuses are making significant strides in reducing problematic drinking.

Campus leaders are beginning to see college drinking as not just a health and wellness issue, but a threat to achieving their institution’s mission.

Alcohol Abstention Rate

reductions in High-Risk drinking Rate

High-Risk Drinking Impacts Institution-level Goals

Frostburg State university

27% decrease across 10 years

23% decrease in 2009 alone

12% decrease across two years

university of

Pittsburghuniversity of tampa

46% 57%

31%25%

12th Graders

College Students

1991 2009

Source: Monitoring the Future, National Survey Results of Drug Use.

High-Risk Drinking

Enrollment/Retention

Academic Reputation

StudentEngagement

Cost management brand value

Page 4: Outside The Classroom

To capitalize on these trends, we’ll need to move quickly and boldly. We must start by leveraging the best of what leading thinkers in the field have already provided—the 3-in-1 Framework, the Environmental Management Model, the NIAAA findings, and other useful guidelines.

But in order to truly achieve breakthrough progress in college alcohol prevention, we need a new framework—one that addresses not just the what, but the how. It’s time the field of prevention had a proven roadmap to enact real change.

It’s time for a Systems Approach.

system (sys•tem)Pronunciation:/sist m/noun

1. a set of things working together as parts of a mechanism or an interconnecting network; a complex whole

2. a set of principles or procedures according to which something is done; an organized scheme or method

Source: Oxford English Dictionary

Page 5: Outside The Classroom

For more information on Systems Thinking, please visit our website at www.outsidetheclassrom.com/systemsthinking.aspx

Systems thinking teaches us that in order to enact change, we need to view problems in the broader context of the whole system—including its various subsystems and the relationships between the subsystems. You couldn’t imagine improving the health of the human body (a highly complex system) without contemplating its many subsystems (circulatory, respiratory, nervous system, etc.) and how they connect to one another.

Embracing systems thinking in college alcohol prevention requires recognizing that there is no single solution, but rather several interconnected processes that together lead to change.

Achieving

Breakthrough Progress

A Systems Approach to Alcohol Prevention

“ Vision without systems thinking ends up painting lovely pictures of the future with no deep understanding of the forces that must be mastered to move from here

to there.”

— Peter Senge

The Fifth Discipline: The Art and Practice of The Learning Organization

Page 6: Outside The Classroom

Gathering and Evaluating Baseline Data

Effectively addressing high-risk drinking requires, fi rst and foremost, a clear understanding of the problem—not just how much students drink, but where, when, why, and how they drink, as well as the consequences of their drinking. Without that baseline data, it’s impossible to effectively set goals and know where to allocate resources.

That’s where Outside The Classroom’s online education program, AlcoholEdu, makes all the difference. Through its comprehensive surveys, AlcoholEdu provides you with a wealth of data on your fi rst-year students’ alcohol use. But more importantly, we analyze that data for you, mining for trends and insights that are most meaningful, so that you can start building a prevention strategy that makes sense for your institution.

Assess and Analyze

Pre- and post-course surveys capture hundreds of data points for every student.

Surveys can be customized to allow campuses to assess areas of particular interest.

Surveys yield a robust database on fi rst-year students’ alcohol use, including frequency, negative consequences, attitudes towards drinking, high-risk locations, and more.

The AlcoholEdu Student Survey

Page 7: Outside The Classroom

1. What percentage of your students fall into each drinking category?

Abstainers %

Light drinkers %

High-risk drinkers %

2. What percentage of your prevention resources do you allocate to each of these groups?

Abstainers %

Light drinkers %

High-risk drinkers %

3. How do your campus’s drinking rates compare to the national average?

Higher Lower At Average

to peer institutions?

Higher Lower At Average

4. In what settings do your students most often drink?

For a more comprehensive version of this diagnostic inquiry and others presented in this guide, and to score your campus on key metrics, please visit our website at www.outsidetheclassroom.com/diagnostic.aspx.

DIAGnoSTIc InQUIRY

Each report includes benchmarks against national aggregates and peer institutions.

Data are also available online via the StudentVoice platform for customized analyses, cross-tabulations, “deep dives,” and comparisons over time.

Outside The Classroom provides an annual Executive Summary review of your data to share with key stakeholders on campus.

Your Institution National Average

Page 8: Outside The Classroom

ImPACt

CO

St

Building an Informed, Effective Prevention Strategy

Plan and Set Goals

With prevention dollars scarce and investments increasingly scrutinized, good strategic planning is more critical than ever. Yet knowing which evidence-based strategies might work on a given campus can be challenging. Campuses often select a few strategies without truly understanding whether the programs or policies they are implementing are appropriate or effective, and frequently fail to set concrete goals in advance.

To help campuses navigate through the goal-setting and strategic planning processes, Outside The Classroom has developed a proprietary decision-making tool called The Alcohol Prevention Compass. The Compass evaluates the relative strength of more than 30 alcohol prevention policies and programs in terms of their effectiveness, cost, and reach. In addition to this invaluable resource, our staff provides hands-on support and expertise—via phone, email, and on-campus briefings—to guide your planning efforts.

To help guide programmatic decision-making, The Compass uses an innovative methodology to map common alcohol prevention strategies in terms of their effectiveness, cost, and reach.

Examples of Other Prevention Strategies Examined:

BASICS Curriculum Infusion Fake ID Policies Friday Classes Group Motivational Enhancement Invited Speakers Online Education Parental Notification Policies RA Training Safe Rides Social Norms Marketing Substance-Free Housing

Alcohol-Free Options

Medical Amnesty

THE AlcoHol PREVEnTIon comPASS

Page 9: Outside The Classroom

DIAGnoSTIc InQUIRY

1. What are your top three alcohol prevention goals for the coming year?

1.

2.

3.

2. When was the last time your campus underwent a formal strategic planning process for alcohol prevention?

Date:

3 . Are all components of your prevention strategy informed by the latest research?

Yes No

4. Which of your currentprevention programs arehaving the greatest impacton student drinking?

5. Do you have a method for identifying which students want to be involved in planning alcohol-free events?

Yes No

Guiding You Through The compassTo ensure that each partner institution gleans value from The Compass, our research team is available to share their expertise regarding each prevention strategy, as well as assist campuses in evaluating their prevention programs and policies in light of the Compass framework.

using Alcohol-Free Options to Promote a Healthy Campus EnvironmentThis report takes a comprehensive look at alcohol-free options as a prevention strategy, including:

Research on the impact of alcohol-free options

Challenges campuses face in implementing alcohol-free options

Case studies and best practices for maximizing their impact

Additional Planning Resourcesfor alcohol-free options

Student Engagement DataAlcoholEdu’s student engagement tools allow campuses to capture data on:

What alcohol-free activities your students are most interested in Which students are interested in participating in these activities Which students are interested in planning these activities

The Compass online includes extensive background materials, tools, and implementation support for each strategy

COST

IMPACT

Page 10: Outside The Classroom

Gain Institutional Buy-In

Alcohol prevention simply cannot succeed in a vacuum. Before prevention efforts can move forward, campus constituents beyond the Student Affairs office must be bought into the vision and process behind prevention and clearly see the importance of their role in addressing high-risk drinking.

Engaging senior administrators, faculty members, and community leaders in alcohol prevention requires connecting the goals of alcohol prevention to broader stakeholder goals, as well as to the institution’s overall mission. Outside The Classroom’s on-campus briefings, research studies, and tools (like our Cost Calculator) help you educate and motivate your key stakeholders and build a culture of shared responsibility.

Engaging Key Stakeholders in Alcohol Prevention

on-campus BrieFings

Disseminating Research Findings to Your ColleaguesOutside The Classroom experts bring our most relevant and meaningful research findings to an audience of your choosing.

Facilitating Productive Discussion and PlanningOur staff guide your team members through productive discussion to help bring focus to prevention planning efforts and provide a framework for thinking about current and future programming and policy making.

Page 11: Outside The Classroom

other Resources for Institutionalizing Alcohol Prevention on Your campus

DIAGnoSTIc InQUIRY

1. Is there an individual/ individuals on your campus who are accountable for alcohol prevention?

Yes No

2. How many individuals outside of Student Affairs play a role in achieving your institution’s prevention objectives?

3. Where does most of your prevention funding come from?

Hard dollars in the budget

Grant dollars

4. Has your President or Provost publicly spoken about the alcohol issue in the past year?

Yes No

5. Does your campus measure the impact of high-risk drinking on institutional priorities (such as student success, retention, and financial performance)?

Yes No Don’t know

Increase awareness of the need for alcohol prevention among senior leaders

Presidential Cabinet, Board of Trustees, Provost, Vice Presidents

The Impact of High-Risk Drinking on Mission-Critical Priorities

Gain buy-in from key institutional and community stakeholders

Campus Community Coalition, Faculty Senate, Departmental Leadership (Athletics, Alumni Affairs, Admissions, etc.)

“Alcohol 101”— Understanding the Value of Alcohol Prevention

Align the institution’s alcohol prevention programming with data-driven needs and stated objectives

AOD Task Force, Student Affairs Division, Student Leaders

Choosing a Prevention Strategy that Makes Sense for Your Campus

Alcohol-Related Cost CalculatorQuantifies the total cost of alcohol use (in dollars) on your campus

Alcohol-Related Attrition—Lost Revenue CalculatorQuantifies the total revenue lost due to retention issues related to alcohol use

Institutionalizing Alcohol Prevention: Strategies for Engaging Key Stakeholders Detailed research report with guidance on how to establish a culture of shared responsibility and accountability for prevention work on campus

ObjECtIvE AuDIENCE CONtENt

$

representative on-campus brieFings

Page 12: Outside The Classroom

Develop Leadership

Absent effective leadership, even the most carefully planned prevention efforts often fail. Prevention professionals need to be not just practitioners, but powerful catalysts for change in their organizations and within their communities. In many instances, they need to expand their skill set to include communicating vision, storytelling, navigating institutional politics, crisis management, and innovation.

Outside The Classroom, in partnership with NASPA, has developed a Professional Development Institute–Certificate in Alcohol Prevention Leadership to cultivate leadership skills that the field has acknowledged to be lacking, yet are critical to achieving exceptional practice. The Institute provides a unique, highly interactive learning experience, empowering participants to be inspiring and effective stewards for progress on their campuses.

creating Agents for change

PRoFESSIonAl DEVEloPmEnT InSTITUTE- cERTIFIcATE In AlcoHol PREVEnTIon lEADERSHIP

Writing and Communicating Your Personal vision StatementReview examples of powerful vision statements, develop your own statement, and practice delivering it in small and large groups.

understanding Your Leadership StyleTake a pre-course self-assessment to reflect on your strengths and weaknesses as a leader, benchmark against peers, and identify areas of focus.

building Relationships with Key Stakeholders Discuss the challenges, opportunities, and strategies for enfranchising colleagues and stakeholders in prevention and practice techniques to open lines of communication and build trusting and productive relationships.

bringing Innovation and Creativity to Prevention WorkDevelop a personal action plan to challenge your own assumptions about your role as a change agent and innovator on campus.

REPRESENtAtIvE WORKSHOPS

Page 13: Outside The Classroom

DIAGnoSTIc InQUIRY

1. Have you created and clearly articulated a vision for addressing high-risk drinking on your campus?

Yes No

2. Are the professionals responsible for alcohol prevention on your campus empowered to lead change on this issue?

Yes No

3. Has your campus been successful

in developing effective campus/community coalitions to address high-risk drinking?

Yes No

4. Does your campus have effective

channels for communicating your prevention goals to key campus and community stakeholders?

Yes No

Who Should Attend the Professional Development Institute?

The Institute is intended for professionals who carry primary responsibility for alcohol prevention on their campus. This may include:

Module 4

42 Certificate in Alcohol Prevention Leadership – Program One

Application Exercise: Identifying Your Current Sphere of Influence Step 1: Complete the following chart. Write the names of key stakeholders in the parts of the sphere in which they currently reside. Try to name a particular person, rather than a group of individuals.

Step 2: On the circles above, CIRCLE the three stakeholders that are most important for you to move closer into your sphere of influence. Step 3: Building a stronger relationship with these stakeholder starts with a first step. List one action step—however small—that you will take with each stakeholder when you return to your campus to begin fostering that relationship (e.g., introduce yourself via email, share important data, have lunch, etc.)

Stakeholder Initial Action Step #1

#2

#3

Certificate in Alcohol Prevention Leadership – Program One 61

Group Exercise: Working with Your “Change Coach” Directions: Work with a partner and take turns being a “change coach” for each other. In that role, please do the following:

Step 1: Learn what program and policy changes that your partner wants to make on campus, and then what barriers your partner is facing in trying to introduce these program and policy innovations. Step 2: Using Kotter’s framework as a guide, ask questions to help your partner think about what he or she has done regarding each step, and what remains to be done. Step 3: From these ideas, help your partner identify up to three key steps for an action plan that will help them better lead change on campus.

Note: Please watch your time. Spend 20 minutes on developing each person’s action plan.

Kotter’s 8 Steps Activities Step 1: Create a sense of urgency

Past: Future:

Step 2: Build the team Past: Future:

Step 3: Create a vision for change

Past: Future:

innovative learning activities and interactive exercises

AOD coordinators Directors of health promotion/education

Directors of student wellness

Directors of residential life Directors of Greek life Judicial affairs administrators

The curriculum has been carefully designed to be relevant and engaging for both practitioners new to the field and seasoned professionals.

innovative learning activities and interactive exercises

”The Professional Development Institute gave me the tools to be able to deliver my message to senior-level administrators and really get them engaged in an effective way.”— Kate DiEmidio

Health Educator, American University

Page 14: Outside The Classroom

Employ Best Practices

Success in alcohol prevention requires more than simply choosing the right strategies—those strategies also must be well-executed. A social norms marketing campaign, for instance, is only worth the dollars invested if it is properly designed and appropriately implemented.

As the fi eld evolves, best practices for implementing prevention strategies are emerging across campuses. Outside The Classroom is committed to bringing those practices to light, distilling their critical success factors, and sharing these insights broadly so that institutions can maximize their prevention investments. Not only do we serve as a clearinghouse for good ideas, but a vital forum for prevention professionals to learn from one another’s successes—and failures.

Implementing State-of-the-Art Strategies

Sample Research Studies

The Greek Challenge: Effective Strategies for Reducing Alcohol Risk and Harms Among Fraternity and Sorority Members

The Game Day Challenge: Effective Strategies for Reducing High-Risk Drinking at College Athletic Events

Using Alcohol-Free Options to Promote a Healthy Campus Environment

Strategic Drinking: The Growing Danger of Pregaming on College Campuses

Addressing High-risk Drinking around Major Events and Campus Traditions

Page 15: Outside The Classroom

AnnUAl RESEARcH SUmmIT DIAGnoSTIc InQUIRY

1. Do your prevention programs and policies reflect the “state-of-the-art” in the field?

Yes No Don’t know

2. Are your prevention programs

cost-effective?

Yes No Don’t know

3. Have you established a broad

network of colleagues at other campuses for sharing best practices?

Yes No

4. Which specific high-risk populations are you targeting with prevention efforts (e.g., athletes, fraternity/sorority members, first-year students)?

5. Which specific high-risk events are you targeting with prevention efforts (e.g., Homecoming, sporting events, Halloween)?

Maximizing Alcohol Prevention Investments: Critically Analyzing Programmatic Expenditures in a Time of Scarce Resources

Alcohol Use and Student Success: The Impact of High-Risk Drinking on Retention, Academic Performance, and Student Engagement

Enlisting Today’s Parents in Alcohol Prevention: Challenges and Opportunities for Leveraging Parental Influence

Mental Health, Social Connectedness, and Alcohol Use: Original Analysis of National Data

The Future of Alcohol Prevention: Navigating Changes in the Higher Education Landscape

Promoting Student Engagement in Alcohol Prevention: Tapping an Underleveraged Resource

Topics addressed at prior Research Summits include:

”Every time I attend the Annual Research Summit, the data that is given to us and the research that is provided really helps to move things forward….and benchmark where we are compared to our colleagues at other colleges and universities.”— Kate Shurick

Dean of First-Year Students, Union College

Each year, Outside The Classroom’s Alcohol Prevention Coalition convenes a Research Summit—a forum for sharing our original research findings and promoting learning and collaboration among student affairs professionals.

Page 16: Outside The Classroom

In order to understand whether your prevention strategy is working, not only do you need to set discrete goals, but regularly measure performance against them. This process of planning, action, evaluation, and reflection ensures that institutions remain focused in their prevention efforts and redirect their strategy as necessary along the way.

To help campuses close this loop, Outside The Classroom provides data demonstrating performance across a wide range of metrics and points in time. Our staff guides each partner institution through an extensive diagnostic evaluation that allows benchmarking against an institution’s own performance over time, as well as comparison to peer institutions. We work closely with your team to use the data captured to identify areas of weakness and opportunities for improvement—and provide tools and support to move forward.

Measureand Improve

Tracking Results and RedeFining Strategy fi

Complete comprehensive online diagnostic assessment of your campus’s prevention efforts.

STEP TWoSTEP onE

Based upon your responses and other data you capture, your campus will receive a total score and scoring across several key dimensions.

A-B-

PrEvEnTIOnSCOrECArD 2010

Programming

Policies

Processes

Institutionalization Total Score

B-c-B

Institutionalization Score based on:

• Resource Commitment

• Senior Leadership Support

• Campus Partnerships

• Community Partnerships

Sample Questions:

• What are the primary components of your alcohol prevention programming?

• What is the total FTE # devoted to alcohol prevention and intervention on your campus?

• Do you have specific, quantifiable goals for your alcohol prevention efforts?

Diagnostic Inventory captures 200+ data points to build a baseline measure of your prevention program

Page 17: Outside The Classroom

Measureand Improve

DIAGnoSTIc InQUIRY

1. Does your campus capture data to track progress against specific prevention goals?

Yes No Don’t know

2. Does your campus capture data

that allow you to evaluate trends over time?

Yes No Don’t know

3. Are the metrics you capture shared with others on your campus/in your community?

Yes No Don’t know

4. How often do you revisit your broader prevention strategy and readjust as necessary?

5. Who is held accountable if your campus does not achieve its prevention goals?

Outside The Classroom staff reviews your scorecard with you to identify challenges, weaknesses, and develop an action plan for improvement.

STEP THREE

STEP FoUR

Performance is measured at regular intervals, allowing you to track progress over time and benchmark against other institutions on various metrics.

PrEvEnTIOn ACTIOn PlAn 2010/2011

Strategic prevention goals:• Three-month • Six-month• One-year• Five-year Obstacles to address Programs/strategies to consider

Programs/strategies to discontinue

Additional data needs Key constituencies to enfranchise

2010 2011 2012 2013

Your Institution

national Aggregate

Peer Institutions

Page 18: Outside The Classroom

How can we help you?There are three ways to partner with outside The classroom to begin tackling the challenge of high-risk drinking on your campus:

If your campus is poised to embrace a systems approach for achieving breakthrough progress in alcohol prevention, the Alcohol Prevention Coalition offers a comprehensive set of research and advisory services to support your efforts, including best practice reports, on-campus briefings, expert consultations, and professional development. For more information on The Alcohol Prevention Coalition, please see pages 18-21.

If your campus is ready to take the single most effective step for reducing the harms associated with high-risk drinking and capturing critical data—AlcoholEdu for College provides an evidence-based online alcohol education program with demonstrated efficacy when administered at a population level. For more information on AlcoholEdu for College, please see pages 22-28.

If your campus seeks to educate students on the risks of alcohol use but is constrained by a limited budget, College Alc provides a basic online alcohol education program for all first-year students. For more information on CollegeAlc, please see page 29.

1

2

3

Page 19: Outside The Classroom

the Alcohol prevention coalition

The Alcohol Prevention CoalitionLaunched in 2009, The Alcohol Prevention Coalition provides institutional leaders with the insights, tools, and support to reduce alcohol-related risk and the health, safety, and financial costs associated with it. The Coalition’s research team is fully deployed against the task of unearthing and sharing good ideas, keeping our partners informed as to frontier practices, and supporting them in adopting those ideas with consultation and practical guidance every step of the way. As a Coalition partner, you can leverage our team as an extension of your own staff.

SUPPoRTInG YoUR JoURnEY ToWARD BREAKTHRoUGH PRoGRESS

THE AlcoHol PREVEnTIon coAlITIon

comPRE

HEnSIVE cAmPUS EVAlUATIon

As a Coalition partner, you receive a full diagnostic assessment of your

prevention program, allowing you to focus your efforts on the areas of

greatest potential impact.

We serve as a source of ongoing collaboration and guidance in your programmatic

decision-making, helping you to craft a strategy that reflects the unique needs of

your campus.

Access to our insights ensures your prevention program is based upon the latest evidence and national

best practices.

Our staff provides expert consultation, tools, advice, and

practical support to ensure your prevention strategy is successfully

executed.

PREVEnTIon PlAnnInG G

UIDAncEImPlEmEnTATIon S

UPPoRT

STATE-oF-THE-ART RESEARcH

Page 20: Outside The Classroom

the Alcohol prevention coalition

ANNuAL RESEARCH SummIt

Each year, at no cost to your institution, Coalition partners convene to hear our latest research findings, discuss implications, and address challenges with colleagues from across the country.

Partners take from the Summit new insights, fresh perspectives, and best practices that can be put to immediate use on their campuses.

PROFESSIONAL DEvELOPmENt INStItutE

The Institute is a unique leadership development program combining self-reflection, interactive dialogue, and practical application of learned skills in a engaging learning environment.

Participants leave the Institute with a personal action plan, an enhanced network of supportive, diverse campus leaders, and a NASPA Certificate in Alcohol Prevention Leadership.

ON-CAmPuS bRIEFING

Once a year, at your convenience, Outside The Classroom experts bring our most relevant and meaningful research findings to an audience of your choosing.

Briefings generate productive discussion among team members to focus your prevention planning efforts and guide future programming and policy development.

RESEARCH REPORtS AND ExECutIvE SummARIES

The Coalition publishes several major research reports and shorter briefings on a wide range of topical issues, providing both strategic insights and tactical tools.

Publications are available for distribution to key constituents on your campus at no cost.

The full suite of online, Population-Level Prevention programs includes:

AlcoholEdu for College AlcoholEdu for Sanctions Alcohol Innerview (Brief Motivational Intervention tool) AlcoholEdu for Parents SexualAssaultEdu

Overview of Coalition Services

ExPERt CONSuLtAtION

Coalition partnership includes unlimited, on-demand access to research analysts (via phone or email) to discuss your institution’s unique challenges or learn more about specific research areas.

Our experts also host periodic conference calls on topics of widespread interest to Coalition partners.

ONGOING PLANNING SuPPORt

Upon joining The Coalition, each campus completes our Diagnostic Inventory and receives an evaluation of their current prevention practices.

Our staff of experts guide your team in identifying areas of focus, setting goals, and developing and implementing an effective strategy.

EDUcATInG YoUR STUDEnTS

SUPPoRTInG YoUR STAFF

StuDENt ENGAGEmENt PROGRAmS

The Coalition is designed to be integrated with our student engagement programs to leverage campus-specific data and support alcohol education efforts.

Page 21: Outside The Classroom

the Alcohol prevention coalition

cASE STUDIES

RESEARcH REPoRTS

The Future of Alcohol Prevention: Navigating Changes in the Higher Education Landscape

Alcohol Use and Student Success: The Impact of High-Risk Drinking on Retention, Academic Performance, and Student Engagement

Enlisting Today’s Parents in Alcohol Prevention: Common Challenges and Opportunities for Leveraging Parental Influence

Promoting Student Engagement in Alcohol Prevention: Tapping an Underleveraged Resource

Institutionalizing Alcohol Prevention: Strategies for Engaging Key Stakeholders and Aligning Objectives

Maximizing Alcohol Prevention Investments: Critically Analyzing Programmatic Expenditures in a Time of Scarce Resources

Strategic Drinking: The Growing Danger of Pregaming on College Campuses

Mental Health, Social Connectedness, and Alcohol Use: Original Analysis of National Data

The Game Day Challenge: Effective Strategies for Addressing High-Risk Drinking at College Athletics Events

The Greek Challenge: Effective Strategies for Reducing Alcohol Risk and Harms Among Fraternity and Sorority Members

Using Alcohol-Free Options to Promote a Healthy Campus Environment

Addressing High-risk Drinking Around Major Events and Campus Traditions

Featured Research from The Alcohol Prevention Coalition

reducing the Costs of BASICS While Maintaining Effectiveness

Case Examples of Student Engagement in Campus Alcohol Prevention

Encouraging Bystander Intervention: Challenges and Successes

Effective Strategies for Engaging Key Stakeholders in Alcohol Prevention

Improving retention by Addressing Alcohol-Related Attrition

Diagnostic Inventory: Comprehensive Online Assessment of Campus Prevention Efforts

The Alcohol Prevention Compass: Evaluation of the Impact and Cost of Today’s Prevention Strategies

Institutional Cost Calculator: Quantifying the Financial Toll of Alcohol on Your Campus

Alcohol-related Attrition: Lost Revenue Calculator

Institutionalization Self-Assessment: Scoring Your Campus’s Commitment to Prevention

Social Support and Emotional Health Environmental Screening Tool

Future Preparedness: Is My Campus Ready for the Future of Alcohol Prevention?

PREVEnTIon PlAnnInG ToolS

Page 22: Outside The Classroom

“It has been less than a year since we joined the Coalition, and even though we are relative newbies to it, already it’s so clear that we made the right decision.”— Craig Andrade, Associate Dean of Health and Wellness, Wheaton College

The research has allowed us to open up doors and have… conversations with other colleagues on our campus and show how this issue relates to them.”— Anna Edwards, Director of Student Services, University of South Carolina, Columbia

What Our Partners Are Saying About The Alcohol Prevention Coalition

“The Alcohol Prevention Coalition is providing us with top-notch research and data that we can look at nationally. It also helps us with the data at our own university. There’s no other place offering this. This is it. This is the best thing around.”— Chris Austin, Director of Alcohol

and Other Drugs, North Carolina State University

the Alcohol prevention coalition

“You get support. You get new

ideas. It’s like a family and you

really get a sense that everyone is in

this together. And for me, to come

from a university that employs only

one person in this field, this is

my extended support system. “

—Donna Darmody, Director of Health Education,

Roger Williams University

www.outsidetheclassroom.com/stories.aspx

To Hear what other partners are saying view our partner videos at:

Page 23: Outside The Classroom

AlcoholEdu for College

AlcoholEdu for College is an online alcohol prevention program designed to be administered to an entire population of students. The program supports campus efforts to shift their resources to address the needs of all students—not just high-risk drinkers— thus avoiding the “Prevention Paradox.”

To move beyond the Prevention Paradox, we need to reallocate our prevention resources to match the needs of the student population.

THE PREVEnTIon PARADox 1

THE nEW 80/20 RUlE

olD AllocATIon oF RESoURcES nEW AllocATIon oF RESoURcES

Alcoholedu for college

... yet the majority of campus

resources are put toward High-risk Drinkers.

Moderate Drinkers and Abstainersrepresent the majority of students on a college campus...

1 Weitzman, E.R. and Nelson, T.F. (2004). College Student Binge Drinking and the “Prevention Paradox”: Implications for Prevention and Harm Reduction. Journal of Drug Education, 34(3), 247-263.

80% 20%

Abstainers/Moderate Drinkers High-risk Drinkers

High-risk Drinkers

Abstainers/ Moderate Drinkers

High-risk Drinkers

Abstainers/ Moderate Drinkers

80% 80%20% 20%

Page 24: Outside The Classroom

Provides Science-based Alcohol Education

Interactive lessons incorporate multiple evidence-based learning theories in order to achieve specific behavior change objectives.

Resets False Expectations

Correct social norms messaging is emphasized using real student survey data and analysis of media and advertisements.

models Safe Decision-making

Real-life student success stories encourage participants to adopt positive behaviors and build self-efficacy.

Engages Students in a meaningful Way

Entertaining format features a story narrative and activities that reflect the way millennials communicate (blogs, IM chats, videos, etc.).

1 STATE-oF-THE-ART coURSE conTEnT

Engaging Students to Inspire Behavior ChangeAlcoholEdu incorporates the latest evidence-based prevention methods to create a highly personalized user experience that inspires students to reflect on and consider changing their drinking behaviors.

AlcoholEdu for college

Your bAC Over time

Page 25: Outside The Classroom

“Personal Plan” tool allows students to set personal goals based on their drinking choices and provides highly specific strategies and suggestions to help them achieve these goals.

booster emails delivered to students throughout the year connect them back to their Personal Plan to help them monitor their progress. Students know these emails as “AlcoholEdu Check-Ins.”

2 PERSonAlIzED PATHWAYS

3 GoAl SETTInG AnD PlAnnInG ToolS

Jill is an 18-year-old incoming

first-year student. She thinks

that getting drunk every once

in a while is okay, as long

as it doesn’t interfere with

school. She drinks—not

necessarily a lot—but wonders

how this might change when

she gets to college.

A Sample Profile for “Jill”

Pathways are determined by students’ responses to survey questions in several categories.

Drinking Patterns

Gender

Attitudes and Beliefs Readiness to Change

Introduction

Survey-Driven Personalization

AlcoholEdu delivers a personalized experience to all types of students (committed non-drinkers, situational non-drinkers, light/moderate drinkers, high-risk drinkers, etc.), based on their responses to the course’s initial survey. For example, frequent high-risk drinkers receive a highly personalized Brief Motivational Intervention (BMI).

user-Driven Personalization

“What would you do?” scenarios help students practice and reinforce safe decision-making.

Blood alcohol concentration (BAC) exercise allows students to examine their own drinking habits.

Policy debates and other discussions boost student interest and engagement.

Opportunities to “learn More” increase student ownership over their learning experience.

Alcoholedu for college

Page 26: Outside The Classroom

What Students Really ThinkNo incoming college student thinks a required course on alcohol is going to be fun, but the feedback that we continually gather may surprise you. A quantitative analysis of 207,500 incoming first-year students who completed AlcoholEdu for College in the 2008-2009 academic year revealed that they found the course to be engaging, stimulating, and informative.

Complete findings from this study have been submitted for publication. To learn more about this investigation and the research methodology, please visit www.outsidetheclassroom.com/studentfeedback.aspx

“I had thought about

changing my drinking habits but

never actually took the time

to decide what I needed to do.

AlcoholEdu made me take the

time to put all my focus into

making my life more productive

and healthier.”

— Student at College of Charleston

“I liked how the program gave me information in a more entertaining way, as opposed to the ordinary articles that usually bore students and make them less likely to pay attention. I learned a lot from this program and I actually enjoyed it.”-Student at Georgia College and State University

“I didn’t learn anything new…”

“ The course was boring…”

77% of students reported that AlcoholEdu prepared them to identify signs of alcohol poisoning.

76% of students reported that AlcoholEdu prepared them to help a friend in alcohol-related distress.

84% of students moderately to strongly agreed that the course was presented in an interesting and engaging format.

86% reported that the course was visually appealing.

“ It was a waste of my time…”

86% of students reported being moderately to highly engaged and attentive.

You may have heard… But the Reality is:

AlcoholEdu for college

Page 27: Outside The Classroom

Version

9.0(2009)

9.0(2008)

8.0(2007)

5.0(2004)

4.0(2005)

4.0(Customized

version,2006)

Student Population Key Findings Overall Results

Over the past six years, overwhelming evidence has emerged in support of AlcoholEdu for College as an effective prevention program, with the most recent versions demonstrating strong efficacy. In 2010, two randomized control studies, one published in Addictive Behaviors and the other appearing in the Journal of Health Communication, show that AlcoholEdu reduces student drinking and alcohol-related negative consequences. It is the only program proven to reduce negative consequences.

Mounting Evidence Proving Efficacy of AlcoholEdu

“ If the NIAAA Task Force were to reconvene, I believe AlcoholEdu for College would be classified as a ‘Tier 1’ strategy, meaning that it has a high level of empirical support. The criterion the Task Force used was simple: for a program or policy to be so classified, there needed to be at least two ‘rigorous’ studies showing that it worked.”

—William DeJong, PhD, Executive Director of Research and Analysis, Outside The Classroom, Member of the 2002 NIAAA Task Force

Compared to the control group, students who completed AlcoholEdu:• Engaged in heavy drinking less frequently.• Suffered fewer negative alcohol-related consequences.• Had less positive expectations of drinking than students who had not

completed the program.

Compared to the control group, students who completed AlcoholEdu:• Had a lower tendency to play drinking games.• Had a higher likelihood of failing to use safe sex practices.Note: By failing to use analysis of covariance, the research team did not statistically

control for baseline differences between the treatment and control groups.

Compared to the control group, students who completed AlcoholEdu:• Had less positive expectations of drinking than students who had not completed

the program.• Had a greater increase in the use of protective behaviors (making sure to eat a

meal or snack before drinking, pacing drinks to one or fewer per hour, etc.).

Compared to the control group, students who completed AlcoholEdu:• Reported having significantly fewer total drinks.• Suffered fewer drinking-related behavioral consequences.• Were less likely to expect positive outcomes from drinking.• Were less accepting of others’ alcohol use behaviors. • Were less likely to be heavy episodic drinkers.Note: Research team used analysis of covariance.

Compared to the control group, students who completed AlcoholEdu:• Reported having significantly fewer total drinks.• Were significantly less likely to engage in problematic drinking.• Were significantly less likely to engage in high-risk drinking-related behavior.Note: Research team used analysis of covariance.

While both the AlcoholEdu and e-CHUG groups demonstrated a decreased number of harms associated with their drinking at follow-up, students in the control group showed an increased number of negative consequences, and only the AlcoholEdu group was significantly different from the control group for alcohol-related negative consequences. • The AlcoholEdu group demonstrated a 37% decrease in alcohol-related consequences.Note: Research team used multivariate analysis of covariance.

20,150 students from225 institutions

Cornell University(rCT*)

Seton Hall University(rCT**)

villanova University(rCT*)

University ofWest Florida

(rCT*)

roger Williams University

(rCT*) +

+/–

+

+

+

+

* Randomized control trial with random assignment of individual students to treatment and control conditions.** Randomized control trial with random assignment of student groups to treatment and control conditions.

Research Evaluations of AlcoholEdu for college

Alcoholedu for college

Page 28: Outside The Classroom

1 Planning and Preparation

In anticipation of the new academic year, we work with you to prepare for the roll-out of AlcoholEdu to your students. This process typically involves:

Supporting Our Partners Across the Academic Year

Outside The Classroom’s Services team has a single mission: to help our partners succeed. It’s that simple. We provide a comprehensive, year-round array of prevention resources that can be tailored to meet the priorities and challenges of your institution.

Mapping out student deadlines and setting thresholds for passing grades

Customizing the program for your campus with unique content, campus-specific student resources, or custom survey questions

Developing effective communications for students and parents (template letters and emails, sample posters, etc.)

Maximizing program completion rates through development of mandates or implied mandates

AlcoholEdu for college

Survey 1

Pre-test

Program

Content

Survey 2

Final Exam

Intersession

(30–45 Days)

Survey 3

Follow-up

24/7 technical support for students when course is “live”

reconciliation tool that simplifies the job of tracking student completion

“Booster” content delivered via email throughout the school year

Maximizing Student EngagementBefore your students even set foot on campus, you have “live” access to data on the types of alcohol-free activities that are most popular among your incoming first-year students, and a roster of students who are interested in:

• Helping to plan alcohol-free activities

• Attending alcohol-free activities • Working on alcohol policy initiatives

2 introducing alcoholedu to the student body

To reduce administrative and staff work during program implementation, AlcoholEdu includes several unique features:

Summer FAll

AlcoholEdu course

Structure

Page 29: Outside The Classroom

3 Ensuring Program Success

As your students engage in the course, we work with you to maximize completion rates, leverage student engagement opportunities, and distill insights from the data through the following activities:

Coordinating reminder messages to students who have not completed the program as final deadlines approach

Providing lists of your students who have volunteered to organize and/or participate in alcohol-free activities

Discussing trends in self-reported attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors, leveraging our state-of-the-art data reporting platform (in collaboration with StudentVoice)

4 Extracting Value From Your Data

Once all survey data is available for your first-year students, we work with you to analyze the data and identify new trends. Our support services include:

Benchmarking your data against national aggregate results and customized peer group results

reviewing your Executive Summary, which analyzes key drinking trends and discusses opportunities for future prevention programming

Providing unlimited access to our team of internal experts, including veteran practitioner and leading national prevention researcher, Dr. William DeJong

Alcoholedu for college

Dedicated 1:1 relationship with a Partner Services Director who supports you continuously throughout the year

Prevention Practice Management offers an in-house prevention practitioner with deep experience who can provide expert advice and guidance

Regular web-publishing of AlcoholEdu “best practices” to maximize program impact

Winter Spring

our Dedicated Partner Services Team

Throughout the year we provide an array of services to enhance your experience.

“The Outside The Classroom staff are amazing. Whenever we have special requests, or we have certain needs specific to our campus, those needs have been met, and we’ve been very pleased with that.”— Anna Edwards, Director of Student Services,

University of South Carolina, Columbia

Page 30: Outside The Classroom

college alc

Lesson 1: College Alcohol useProvides students with normative data and educates students on opinions versus facts regarding college alcohol use.

Lesson 2: How It Works Discusses the scientifi c facts behind alcohol use, such as the metabolic process and rates of absorption.

Five peer-reviewed publications have demonstrated that College Alc increases:

Knowledge of alcohol’s effects Negative alcohol expectancies Intentions to minimize alcohol-related harms

College Alc is also proven to decrease (among drinkers):

Positive attitudes towards alcohol use Frequency of high-risk drinking Frequency of getting drunk

Lesson 3: Risky business Informs students of the risks associated with alcohol consumption, including alcohol expectancies, drinking and driving, unsafe sex, and violence.

Lesson 4: Strategies & Solutions Assists students with identifying signs of alcohol poisoning, overdose, and dependency while also providing strategies to inform students how to intervene and get help.

InTERAcTIVE lESSonS

EFFIcAcY RESEARcH

College AlcCollege Alc is an online alcohol education program developed by Professor David Wyrick at the University of North Carolina-Greensboro, with funding from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA). College Alc was built on the premise that (1)alcohol use can cause harm; (2)harms can be prevented; and (3)college students can play a role in mitigating those potential harms. The course contains pre- and post-surveys (as well as an optional follow-up survey) and four interactive lessons.

To learn more about CollegeAlc, please visit www.outsidetheclassroom.com/CollegeAlc.aspx

Page 31: Outside The Classroom

“Outside the Classroom is, in our mind, so cutting-edge and so much further ahead of other organizations in terms of thinking

about the alcohol issue.”— Constance neary, Vice President of Risk Management, United Educators

“Outside The Classroom has been a leader in the field of alcohol prevention for more than a decade. Their outstanding

leadership development programs provide practitioners with skills to address not only alcohol-related challenges, but a wide range

of campus health, safety, and wellness issues.”— Kevin Kruger, Associate Executive Director, NASPA

“Most colleges and universities are not lacking in data, but in opportunities to combine data in meaningful ways. StudentVoice has partnered with Outside The Classroom to help colleges and universities explore the relationship between student alcohol use and other mission-critical student affairs issues, such

as retention, academic success, and student learning outcomes.” — Eric reich, President and Co-Founder, StudentVoice

oUR STRATEGIc PARTnERS

Outside The Classroom collaborates with other leading organizations in higher education to join resources in an effort to collectively move the field forward.

Page 32: Outside The Classroom

Outside the Classroom250 First AvenueSuite 201Needham, MA 02494t 781.726.6677 F 781.726.6688e [email protected]