Environmental
Management: A Comprehensive Strategy for Reducing Alcohol and Other Drug Use on College
Campuses
Overview
The mission of the Higher Education Center
is to assist institutions of higher education in developing and carrying out alcohol and
other drug prevention programs that foster students' academic and social development and
promote campus and community safety. A central feature of the Center's work is the
promotion of multiple prevention strategies that affect the campus environment as a whole
and can, thereby, have a large-scale impact on the entire campus community. This approach
represents a shift in thinking about prevention and suggests new leadership roles that
postsecondary administrators, faculty, other campus officials, and students can play to
reduce problems associated with alcohol and other drug use and to promote academic
achievement.
Implementation of effective environmental strategies
will only come about if there is strong presidential leadership; a campus-wide task force
that includes a broad spectrum of faculty, staff, and students; engagement with the
community through a campus-community coalition; and the active participation of college
officials in public policy debates, especially at the state level. The Center offers an
integrated array of services to help colleges implement these prevention strategies.
Focusing on campus environments, student decisions to
drink or use other drugs are shaped by:
- campus social norms and expectancies
- campus policies and procedures
- availability of alcohol and other drugs
- enforcement of regulations and laws
- availability of alcohol-free social and recreational
options
Click on elements of the image below to explore each of
the three spheres of action.
Three Spheres of Action
