Presidential Leadership in Statewide Initiatives

In November 1996, a press event was held in Columbus, Ohio, to announce that the presidents of 49 colleges and universities across the state had signed a letter of commitment to make the battle against student high-risk drinking a priority. For the first time, the higher education leadership of an entire state publicly committed itself to tackling this problem. Especially noteworthy was the pledge that the presidents made to work in partnership with local community groups on this issue.

The leaders of the Ohio College Initiative to Reduce High-Risk Drinking believe that presidential leadership has been a key to the success of their initiative. As a result of the initial pledge by presidents, the state of Ohio has provided funding for colleges and universities to form campus and community teams and to develop comprehensive prevention plans. Central to each plan have been comprehensive efforts to reduce minors' access to alcohol, to promote healthy norms with respect to alcohol use among students, to institute responsible beverage service programs, and to punish appropriately those who commit alcohol-related criminal offenses.

The Presidents Leadership Group (PLG) recommends in its publication Be Vocal, Be Visible, Be Visionary that presidents participate in state coalitions addressing high-risk drinking to build support for public policy changes. With strong presidential support, statewide coalitions are better able to leverage the considerable resources and influence that institutions of higher education can bring to bear upon state policy initiatives. Broad representation by presidents in statewide initiatives also demonstrates that all campuses grapple with the issue of AOD problems, share concerns about how to address it, and are equally committed to seeking effective solutions (Presidents Leadership Group, 1997).

In developing their recommendations report, the PLG developed a total of 13 proposals for effective prevention. Together, these proposals constitute a set of priorities for presidential action against the problem of student alcohol abuse.

Inspired by the Ohio example, as many as a dozen states have launched a statewide initiative with a show of presidential support. Examples of successful “kick-off events” have been stand-alone luncheons or daylong events featuring the signing of a commitment statement by presidents. In other instances, existing statewide efforts have been energized by a public demonstration of presidential support. The statewide initiative in Illinois for example was originally established to decrease health and safety problems related to alcohol and other drug use on individual college campuses. Following a presidential signing event in 1999, the goals of the project were expanded to facilitate the creation of state-level support for local campus efforts and to identify specific policy solutions at the state level for prevention activities in higher education.