Octoberfest!

The 3rd annual Octoberfest will be taking place at the USU South West Terrace part of campus from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Oct. 31, 2007. All students are welcome.

Sponsered by the ATOD program, it is a fun, interactive, and informative event that promotes safe partying. Different university groups, such as Project Choice and the University Police, participate in the event.

It consists of different stations handing out t-shirts, food, snacks, and other things. A concert will also be held. Ralph Davis, the ATOD Coordinator, says that the police station is the most popular as they hand out beer goggles and breathilizers.

Davis also said that even though this is the 3rd annual event, it is the first to be held on Halloween day. Last year, 250 t-shirts were given away with about 400 students attending. This year, an estimated 350 t-shirts will be given away with about the same amount of students expected to attend.

It's the exact opposite of this!

An Interview With Officer Leonard

I had an interview with Leonard, a Cal-State University Long Beach Police Officer. He talked about his personal step-by-step approach when dealing with illegal drugs.

Usually, Officer Leonard catches someone after the act of using illegal drugs. During the day shift, this occurs on average about once a month, and usually in the dorms. However, the use is much more active on the night shift, especially on Friday and Saturday nights. CSULB Crime Statistics of 2006.

When Officer Leonard receives a complaint call dealing with drugs, he will immediately go out to the location where the disturbance is. He will confiscate the illegal drugs. He asks the person who called in what that person would like to do with the drug user. What he does with the user depends a lot on the amount of drugs the person has. But it also depends on their attitude towards the officer, their particular location, and if they are bothering anyone near them. He can let them off with a warning, fine them, or arrest them based on these points.

Officer Leonard also told me that there are currently no DUI checkpoints on campus though CSULB Police have collaborated with the Long Beach City Police Department in DUI checkpoints. But future DUI checkpoints on campus have been talked about.

When asked about an interesting story dealing with illegal drugs, Officer Leonard did not hesitate to tell me about a baggy of pot that was lying on the floor in the Administration Building. It seems no one noticed it because it looked like it was stepped on many times.

D.A.T.E. at the Beach Program

Standing for drugs, alcohol, and tobacco education, D.A.T.E. at the Beach is a new award-winning program at Cal-State Long Beach that takes place on Wednesday evening. The program is not an intervention but a proactive presentation in hopes of exposing the ATOD Program to the campus community, and provide information and resources to all students. However, this is not only peer education, but groups of student-to-student interaction where they exercise their communication on the issue.

Ralph Davis is the ATOD coordinator and one of the Health Beat editors. He says that ATOD peer educators conduct the outreach to usually a classroom size of 30 students in Residence Halls, fraternities and sororities, athletics, various classrooms, and during annual events and activities; whomever requests the location.

D.A.T.E. at the Beach covers a variety of topics such as the dangers of drinking and driving, sexual assault, date-rape, and other sensitive topics about alcohol, tobacco and other drug issues. But its overall goal is to promote overall safe and healthy choices.


It's not rehab!

The New 4-1-1 on Alcohol Newsletter

The alcohol newsletter is a new feature that was posted on the Cal-State Long Beach Health Center website. By clicking on HRC Programs and then clicking on the Alcohol, Tobacco & Other Drugs link, the 4-1-1 on Alcohol Newsletter appears.

The newsletter informs students about everything they need to know about alcohol. This includes basic facts, alcohol's link to violence and death, California's DUI penalties, the campus's policies regarding alcohol and more. The newsletter also provides tips on alcohol safety and assistance with alcohol problems.

CSULB cooperates with the Drug-Free Schools and Communities Act and the Higher Education Act Section 120A: Drug and Alcohol Abuse Prevention by enforcing standards of conduct that prohibit the unlawful possession, use, or distribution of illegal drugs and alcohol by students and employees on its property or part of any of the school's activities. If this enforcement is broken, CSULB provides a clear statement of disciplinary actions along with a campus drug and alcohol abuse prevention program.

However, CSULB allows alcoholic beverages to be consumed at particular sponsored events with specific approval from the Director of Student Life and Development. The use of alcoholic beverages in any of the residential halls is strictly prohibited.

CSULB is dedicated to to the elimination of the use of illegal drugs and alcohol abuse. The university makes every effort to create a healthy environment.