At the Associated Students of Madison coordinating council Wednesday night, committee members discussed the lifting of the non-resident student cap, and welcomed University Health Services representatives to speak about campus alcohol consumption.
UHS and alcohol
Reonda Washington, UHS Alcohol and other Drug Abuse prevention coordinator, spoke about the alcohol issues on campus and data taken from UW compared to other schools around the nation.
Washington said the overall alcohol intake increases as students progress toward graduation on campus. She said the UW drinking rates are higher than the national rates for high-risk drinkers.
Washington also discussed the importance of the AlcoholEdu program required for all first year students. The program is made up of two parts: one is taken over the summer before the students arrive to campus, and the other is taken 60 days after freshman arrival. These surveys, though, are important in determining how students use and interact with alcohol.
Students at UW are found to have higher rates of experience with alcohol before coming to campus than comparison groups around the nation.
The rate of increase for high-risk and problematic drinkers between the pre-test and post-test is also higher in comparison to other rates, Washington said. But this year there are more nondrinkers and moderate drinkers coming to campus as compared to previous years, she said.
Jenny Rabas, another member of the UHS alcohol prevention staff, said it is the individual’s choice to use alcohol, but the student’s environment can majorly influence their decisions.
Rabas said the goal of AlcoholEdu is to give students the knowledge and skills to use alcohol in a more responsible, low-risk way.
She said UHS has to work on multiple levels within the Madison community.
“In order to make a real difference on this issue we have to affect policies and work within the community,” Rabas said.
Rabas said the ASM council would be a good place to start because they want more students involved to advocate for policy change and discuss what they want to see happen on campus.
Enrollment Cap
ASM Vice Chair Kyla Kaplan led a discussion on the proposed decision to waive the cap set for out-of-state students admitted to UW. Currently 27.5 percent of out-of-state students can be admitted into any UW school system. UW officials are proposing to the System’s Board of Regents that this cap be waived for the next four academic years.
As a result, the UW system would bring in more revenue for the university from out-of-state tuition. It would also be more accessible for students coming from out-of-state.
