Abuse of Drugs and Alcoholic Substances
Abuse of Drugs and Alcoholic Substances 
Drexel University takes a firm stand on abuse of drugs and alcoholic substances. The university has therefore put in rules and regulations that control consumption of these substances. It corporate with the Federal State, city of Philadelphia and the commonwealth of Pennsylvania in ensuring that rules and regulations are adhered to the later.
Rules and Regulations That Control Consumption of Drugs and Alcoholic Substances
The rules must work together in line with the other laws to be effective. This laws and regulations prohibits distribution of alcohol in the school premises or organizing of events in its premises whether they are leased or owned by the university are not allowed unless when given special permission by the dean of students or Queens lane seven days prior the day of the event but the school rules and regulation on alcohol must be observed.
In a case where permission is granted then a security personnel who must be approved by the dean of students and the queens lane will be send in to check whether the rules are being observed from time to time. The security personnel will also ensure that those under the age of 21 years do not take alcoholic drinks and ensuring that other types of drinks are available for those who are not allowed to take alcoholic drinks. The personnel will also ensure that there is enough food for the quests. Those assigned to serve foods and drinks are not allowed to take alcohol when they are still serving and will face severe punishments if found drinking when serving and also if found serving alcohol to underage students.
If permission is granted and an event is held at the school premises there are provisions to be followed which state that no alcohol is to be served to an underage student The policy states that any student under the age of 21years is underage and is therefore prohibited from taking any alcoholic substance. No one is allowed to provide alcohol or any other drugs to an underage student. If a person is found distributing alcohol to underage students then they will face criminal charges. No alcohol is to be sold in the school premises unless in areas where a license has been issued. However, they must ensure that the rules on alcohol and drugs are observed by those operating in these joints. No one is allowed to advertise or do promotions on any alcoholic products anywhere near the Aschool premises. Accepting scholarships from companies that sell alcohol is not a allowed and one can face serious charges if found to have accepted the scholarships in the university. In the event when permission is granted and there is in an outdoor event at the school premises there are some provisions to be followed which states that alcohol is to be served to those who have attained the legal drinking age which 21years and above. During an event where the students are organizing an event a student should be able to produce a legal document like a driving license, passport or identification by the state to prove that he/she has attained the legal drinking age. The hand shall be stamped to show that he/ she have come of legal age and is allowed to enter the premises where the event is taking place. The University requires the organizing team to provide a reliable person who will be checking on the event occasionally. The person should be approved by the dean of students whose duties will include checking on serving of alcohol and checking whether the hosts are responsible. The outdoor reception is limited for not more than two hours and the serving area is limited to those assigned to work in the serving area only and they are prohibited from serving alcohol to those who have not attained the legal drinking age which is 21 years.
The students are expected to observe the school rules and regulation whether they are in campus or off campus. The rules and regulation still applies whether the student was on campus or not when taking the substance If a student violates this rules set by the school he/she will face disciplinary actions which include suspension from the school premises, expulsion, the parent or guardian shall be informed and the student shall be forced to attend seminars on drug and alcohol abuse. In addition the student’s privileges are greatly reduced and access to school equipment shall be limited as a form of punishment. The same applies to the university employees who are not allowed to provide or supply drugs to students. The employees and students will face charges according to the laws of the federal state and the Pennsylvania laws which sentence a person to a jail term which may differ in period according to the offence committed. One might get a jail term of up to a maximum of 20 years and a minimum of one year These policies that the university came up with are meant to help the students at the university, its purpose is to control the amount of alcohol in the university premises and help in reducing the number of students taking alcohol in the compound, it is also meant to provide a guideline for the students and protect those who are still underage from getting exposed to alcohol. And other drug substances that might ruin their lives in campus or off campus.
The alcohol policy may not be effective in controlling consumption of alcohol by the students whether they have attained the legal drinking age or those who are still underage. This is because the students have to be educated on the various effects of consumption of alcohol and not just setting rules that penalize the student for consuming alcohol. The university should be organizing seminars to educate its students on the various effects of alcohol which include throat, stomach, or lung cancers, impaired judgment that may lead one to making decisions that are not right. A person may end up having sex with a person they have just met or one they know nothing about without using protection and may end up with unwanted pregnancies, HIV/AIDS or sexually transmitted diseases. It should involve the students in seeking remedy for drug abuse and consumption of alcohol by asking the students to provide possible solutions to addiction of alcohol instead of coming up with strict measures to try to control consumption of alcohol at the school premises. If the school involves the students in seeking a long lasting remedy to addiction of alcohol then the students won’t go drinking after they are through with their university studies. The policies that the university has come up with are meant to guide the students only in their time in campus but do not prepare them to be able to avoid being addicts once they are off campus with no strict rules to guide them.
However these policies do not stop underage students from taking alcohol, you will find that many people under the age of 21 are taking alcohol despite the fact that the university has strict rules and regulations on consumption of alcohol. This underage students may opt to go and drink outside the school premises or any property owned by the school. This consumption of alcohol by underage people is becoming a major problem as it reduces concentration in class and also one cannot make the right decisions when under the influence of alcohol.
Many young people are losing control of their lives because of consumption of alcohol, Many have been infected with the HIV virus due to drinking, others have been forced into early parenthood, while others are struggling to pass their examinations but cannot because most of their time is wasted in pubs drinking alcohol. A lot has to be done to control underage consumption of alcohol. Parents and guardians have a huge task in trying to control underage drinking. This greatly affects the students’ staff members, faculty and parents. This is because once a student is drunk he/she can be disorderly and cause disturbance in the school premises, hence disturbing those students who need a quite environment to study in a conducive and quite environment. A student may lose respect from his/her fellow students in cases where by he/she misbehaves when in a drunken state and does things that may not please other students. The student may also lose the privileges enjoyed by the other students in a case where one is given limited access to school facilities this may lead to failure in examinations.
Parents and guardians are also affected by consumption of alcohol by underage students as they are the ones responsible in taking care of their children and if the student is expelled or suspended from the university then the parent also suffers just like the student. The parents will face humiliation from the community and the student will be a burden as he/she will not be independent in life and will keep on disturbing the parents. Parents faced with such problems should seek guidance and counseling for their children and be ready to be with them during their therapy.
Influence of Consumption of Alcohol on the Performance of the University
This problem has greatly affected the performance of the institution; the students are not performing well in their examinations due to wastage of time in consuming of alcohol and little or no time for studying hence failure in examinations. We should create a policy that works and can help in solving the problem of alcoholism facing majority of institutions in the world today. Many young people have turned into alcoholics at a tender age and find it difficult to quit. A more friendly approach should be used in trying to solve this problem. The university should try to be less strict in issues concerning consumption of alcohol. The university should use friendly measures in handling cases where students are found guilty of violating school rules on alcohol should not be expelled from school instead they should be given guidance and counseling and assisted in overcoming the addiction problem. Parents, students and the university should work together in tackling these problems. They should come up with more friendly terms and form associations that will help with guiding and counseling. Youths should be educated on the effects of taking alcohol instead of coming up with strict orders which they are forced to adhere to without understanding them well.
The university policy would be more effective if the rules were not too strict and if the students were to be involved in the creation of the rules and made to understand them more instead of forcing them to follow the rules blindly. The school policy should be revised and the rules to be less strict. Some of the punishments that are currently in place should be revised like the clause on expulsion from school should be removed because it is a bit too strict and forces the student to discontinue his/her education.
We as the community should come together in helping curb this problem. We should not discriminate those who are addicted to alcohol but instead we should be on the forefront in helping them overcome this problem. Those who provide alcohol to underage people should stop this habit and strict measures should be taken against them. University employees should be given strict orders not to supply alcohol to underage students and should be role models by not taking alcohol in excess. We should try our best in creating a community free from alcohol and any other drugs as they have many negatives impacts on our lives than we can imagine. To achieve this we should be teaching our children from the time when they are still young the effects of alcohol and try to be practical about the whole issue. Parents who consume alcohol expose their children to higher risks of becoming addicts as they grow up because the alcohol is readily available and they have the urge to know how it feels like when one is drunk.
Peer pressure is another contributing factor in the high rates of alcoholism among the young generation. Young people tend to fall prey to wrong company and end up adapting to bad behaviors which could have been avoided if the youngster had chosen the right group of friends. Many young people go to colleges and universities innocent and with good moral qualities only to end up with the wrong group of friends who will end up destroying the good moral values and installing bad character into the innocent young person. The friends might be used to taking drugs and alcohol and they will do everything in their power and capability to make sure that they make the good person to join them in doing their wrong doings. The person won’t realize that he/she is joining the others in their evil deeds but if incase they realize their mistakes it would be too late and they might have already became addicted to either alcohol or using of drugs. Peer pressure is the most common way in which young people end up picking up behaviors that were not taught by parents. This is the stage in their lives when they undergo a lot of changes physically and emotionally. They therefore seek refuge in their friends end up worse The community should be the ones helping the youth in overcoming the problems they face during their adolescence.
This way the community can help greatly in reducing the problems that come up due to peer pressure. They community should be there to guide them during this trying time of their lives. The community should come together educate the students and the teens on the different effects of taking alcohol. These effects should be made clear to both the employees and the students and even the parents. This will have a great effect on the decisions of those thinking of taking alcohol or those who are already taking alcohol. The same policy should be applied in all areas where teens are concerned they should educated on how to be responsible people in life and be able to handle their own problems and be able to solve their problems and not opt to take alcohol as a refuge when they are unable to solve their problems. To be able to overcome these problems of alcoholism the university has to be able to handle the matters concerning the students who have addiction problems.
