The sun rises over the Ghetto on a Sunday morning. Remnants of the weekend's festivities litter porches and yards: crumpled cans, forgotten cups and half-full trash bags are evidence of good times had the nights before. But it's this same good time that has many in the UD community worried.

'I'm concerned about the misperception that to have a good time you have to drink a lot,' said Scott Markland, assistant dean and coordinator of Alcohol and Drug Abuse Prevention. 'And the resulting way a lot of people drink ' a lot of bad stuff happens.'

According to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), 1,700 college students die each year from unintentional alcohol-related injuries. And 97,000 college students are victims of alcohol-related sexual assault or date rape.

Twenty-five percent of college students have reported academic consequences because of their drinking including missing class, falling behind, doing poorly on tests and receiving lower grades overall.

Everyone knows alcohol affects the brain'slurred speech, slowed reaction times and blurred vision, to name a few. But impairments in memory may occur only after a few drinks. And as the amount of alcohol intake increases, so does the degree of impairment.

Large quantities of alcohol consumed quickly and on an empty stomach can result in a blackout. Blackouts are interval of time for which an intoxicated person cannot recall details of events or whole events.

College students are at a great risk for experiencing blackouts because many students engage in binge drinking. Binge drinking is defined as five or more drinks in one sitting (about two hours) for men and four or more drinks for women. Binge drinkers are much more likely to miss classes, become injured and damage property.

The good news is binge drinking is down on UD's campus, according to Markland. And the effort continues to keep it down.

Alcohol and Drug Abuse Prevention Team (ADAPT) promotes the safe and responsible use of alcohol. Their goal is to make campus safer by facilitating safe choices about drinking'which may include not drinking at all. ADAPT works on three levels: with individuals, with the student body and with the surrounding community.

UD also formed an alcohol coalition comprised of faculty, staff, students, alumni and parents all tackling the issue of reducing high-risk drinking on campus. The coalition is sponsoring an Alcohol Screening Day Oct. 19 in Torch Lounge. Come between 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and receive 'objective, non-judgmental feedback about your consumption level.'

This year's freshman class experienced 'Alcohol Edu,' a mandatory online course to increase awareness of responsible drinking and the negative impact of alcohol abuse.

The first part of the course was two hours and taken before students came to college. The much shorter second section takes place 60 days after the first section, so most of the first-year students are currently completing the course.

The course is using data it collected before and after the course was completed to monitor changes in attitudes towards alcohol, including drinking behavior. Markland calls it 'the college effect.' Drinking behaviors usually change six weeks into college, most likely because alcohol becomes a 'social lubricant.' Students will use it to loosen up, feel accepted and keep pace with what seems like the norm.

But what is the norm?

After surveying students to find out how much people are actually drinking and why they drink, I found the number one answer was for various social reasons and to relax after a week of school, not 'to get wasted.'

Most students said they have skipped a class due to drinking, but hardly anyone has ever skipped a test.

'The chemical [alcohol] does provide benefits, but there's a way to use it,' said Markland.

Minor effects of drinking, a good buzz, feeling more social or relaxed, occurs with a blood alcohol level of 0.05 percent or below. Anything above can produce negative effects ranging from a nasty hangover to severe alcohol poisoning.

A couple students stated on the survey they were more fun when they drink. But a person's drinking habits can affect others besides the drinker ' and no one likes taking care of the drunk kid.

Others stated college was the only time they could drink like this. One night of heavy drinking can impair your ability to think abstractly for up to 30 days. That limits your ability to relate readings and lectures. Plus, UD students want to come out of the university with a degree, not alcoholism. But the alcohol abuse in college can lead to full-blown alcoholism after college.

When asked what UD could do to curb drinking on campus, the most common response was plan more events.

'There are a ton of great ideas that could be done,' Markland said.

He said the alcohol coalition formed a group called UD Life aimed at how to impact social life on campus.

Markland said Campus Activities Board received more money this year to produce events on weekends. Eventually Markland would like to see an event offered every weekend and late into the night.

'If you want more activities, we can have them,' said Markland. 'What we need is students to come forward, individually join CAB or student groups come forward and say 'Hey, we'll throw an event.''

Club 6 is another alternative to a night of drinking. It is a new club on campus, although they were formed last year on the 6th floor of Campus South. Club 6 throws substance-free parties on the weekends and have upward of 150 students attend the parties every time they have one.

'They'll have people walk into their parties and ask 'where's the keg'? because it looks like a regular party,' said Markland. 'It's the exact same atmosphere. I would nudge the students, don't wait for the administration to provide things for you. Come forward and ask for things and we can help you do it.'

Most students don't have the intent of going out on a Friday night and becoming destructive'to themselves, others or property. And the university isn't condemning the use of alcohol, only the abuse of it.

For more information on CAB: http://www.udayton.edu/~cab

For more information on ADAPT: http://www.udayton.edu/~adapt