Alcohol policy being updated

A revised version of the University Alcohol Policy — designed to improve student safety and comply with new state regulations — will be presented to student government cabinet members Sunday.

This is the first time the revised policy will be presented to the public said Ron Bilbao chairman of the student alcohol advisory committee.

The new policy is the culmination of nearly a year of work. A task force headed by Assistant Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs Winston Crisp has been working to revise the policy since early 2008.

The task force consisted of nearly 100 individuals including University officials law enforcement officers local business owners and 55 students.

UNC's current alcohol policy consists of eight regulations that restrict consumption and possession to students 21 years old and older.

The policy also outlines its adherence to N.C. law and Chapel Hill town ordinances which must be observed by all students on campus.

The revisions come in response to concerns that the current policy was not up-to-date with state and local regulations and is not providing adequate safety standards for students.

The policy was last updated in 1996. Since then Chapel Hill has passed an ordinance prohibiting alcohol in open containers on the streets" and state laws have defined alcohol in a minor's bloodstream as possession.

""The policy hasn't been revised in more than 12 years" and it's something that should be looked at quite often Bilbao said.

This time" we decided to involve students in the revision process.""

Nationwide" about 1400 college students die each year from alcohol-related incidents and another 70000 are victims of alcohol-related sexual assault according to a 2002 study in the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs.

Though UNC has not had an alcohol-related death in recent years most of the sexual assaults reported on campus have involved alcohol abuse Dean Blackburn assistant dean of students told The Daily Tar Heel in March when the revision began.

The presentation of the revised policy to student government comes as one of the first steps toward finalizing the policy's enactment.

Revisions are expected to be finished and put into effect by fall 2009.

Students can view the current alcohol policy at www.unc.edu/campus/policies/studentalcohol.html.



Contact the University Editor at udesk@unc.edu.