Brett Carlsen

Puke happens. Most of it made it to the toilet, but the bit that didn’t clings resiliently to the walls of the bathroom, resisting every effort to bleach and scrub it clean. Scenes like this are pretty typical on the morning after many college parties and RIT is no exception. Drinking is an established part of the “college experience” for most students in our demographic. According to Alcohol101+, a program dedicated to educating college students on drinking, 84 percent of college students drink at least once a month, and upwards of 70 percent of college students believe that drinking is a central part of their social lives. Here at RIT, according to one substance abuse counselor, the attitude seems to fall in line with the national average, but with a few differences. So why do college students drink the way they do? And how does RIT handle it?

99 Bottles


Think about the last time you went to a party where there wasn’t any booze. Not a drop. Doesn’t happen very often, does it? According to a 2010 study by the University of Rhode Island, most Americans begin drinking around age 15, and over 65 percent of high school students drink. That percentage jumps from 65 to 84 when they arrive in college. So, why the spike?

Brett Carlsen

There are a number of cultural and social factors that contribute to college drinking habits, according to the Higher Education Center. A simple recipe goes like this: Take one shot of newfound freedom, add two ounces of peer pressure, a splash of disposable income and the thrill of being intoxicated. Shake vigorously and serve on ice. Depending on location, there are also factors like lax enforcement of alcohol-related policies and laws by institutions and local law enforcement, as well as easy availability.

While these factors are all contributors, the reasons that students drink varies between individuals. Some drink to help deal with stress or help themselves overcome social anxieties. Others enjoy the tastes and textures of well-crafted adult beverages. Still others do it because they enjoy the feeling of being under the influence. It all varies between individuals, yet still becomes part of the collective college experience. But are these factors the same for RIT?

Brett Carlsen

Karen Pelc is a health education coordinator for RIT’s Department of Student Affairs. In her 24 years at the Institute, she has witnessed firsthand the drinking culture here and has spent a lot of time speaking with students about alcohol usage on campus. From Pelc’s perspective, RIT students tend to be right on par with the average amount of drinking, causal or otherwise, for colleges across the nation. “We’re right in the middle,” she says. But she also observes that with the attitudes of RIT students and the type of atmosphere present, that excessive drinking isn’t so much a part of the culture as in other places. “I think a lot of students here are more focused. They want to get in, get an education so that they can get a co-op, then go get a job,” Pelc explains. RIT students seem to be more driven, and some of the heavy drinking that leads to disciplinary and health problems doesn’t take place as often as it does at other schools.

Brett Carlsen

“Most of the people I meet with are one-time incidents,” Pelc says. “A lot of students just haven’t had experience with alcohol before and don’t know how it will affect them.” Over-pouring, drinking too quickly, or mixing alcohol with other substances, such as caffeine, can change people’s ability to monitor their alcohol intake. “When people make drinks [in] those 16 ounce Solo cups, they aren’t using shot glasses to measure, so they end up drinking a lot more,” Pelc explains. “They think they’re getting one drink, but the equivalent is more like two or three.” In fact, one shot only comes to just above the lowest indentation at the bottom of a 16 ounce Solo cup. Now, when was the last time that you saw someone fill just the bottom of a Solo with booze and think, “That’s enough for now?”

So, people end up drinking too much. Pelc says the body can only process one ounce of alcohol an hour. As you drink, your body’s race to process what you put into it begins, usually to your body’s disadvantage. Alcohol inhibits the receptors in your brain, keeping neurons from firing. The first area affected is the prefrontal cortex, which controls things like speech and inhibition. As more and more alcohol enters the brain through the bloodstream, the rest of your bodily functions begin to suffer. According to Stephen Braun, author of “Buzz: The Science and Lore of Alcohol and Caffeine,” “Alcohol is more like a pharmacological hand grenade. It affects practically everything around it.” Too much can also hinder sexual performance by not allowing nerves in your nether regions to relax enough to function. To quote Shakespeare, “It provokes the desire, but it takes away the performance.”

Brett Carlsen

Pelc also noted that student athletes, surveyed by Alcohol101+ and fitness site Active.com as the student demographic that drinks the most, put themselves at a disadvantage athletically. “My friend John Underwood at the American Athletic Institute has been doing research on the effect of alcohol on athletes.” Pelc said. “He found that athletes who drink, especially weekend warriors, no matter how much they work out, never reach their peak.” She further explained that even though the alcohol may have already passed through the body, its effects on the body can last up to two weeks. Despite this, student athletes still have a high rate of binge drinking.

About Last Night…

“I punched out a car’s rear windshield. I think I was on rollerblades.” Issued straight-faced and nonchalantly, this statement from an RIT student, who wishes to remain anonymous for personal and legal reasons, seems so bizarre that you might think you misheard it. Or you will until he rolls up his sleeve and shows you the pink and red scar where the glass sliced his arm. “I think I just wanted to punch something hard,” he adds. Over New Year’s, he and some friends were drinking heavily, and at one point he donned a pair of skates and punched out the window. At least, that’s what he’s heard. He blacked out and doesn’t remember the incident. He’s now paying for the windshield, but no legal actions were taken.

While RIT students generally match national trends, this student represents a smaller group of students at the end of the spectrum. Speaking to him is almost surreal at times. He calmly describes instances that would generally seem over the top to most people. He recalls chugging a beer bottle-sized container of vodka during freshman year, ending up with a blood alcohol content (BAC) of 0.36. “I remember the motion of my head tilting back with the bottle, and that’s it,” he says. “I don’t know what I was thinking or why I did it.” He was caught being belligerently drunk in the dorms after attending an off campus party. He doesn’t remember getting back to campus, but police were called to get him under control. He received a deferred suspension for the incident, was made to write an essay stating that he learned his lesson and had to stay out of trouble for a year.

Brett Carlsen

There is no regret in his voice. He seems to find the stories mildly amusing, even though a BAC of 0.36 is near-fatal and he must pay for the broken window. But he says these kinds of incidents only happen when he drinks hard liquor, which he does only rarely. He does, however, state that he drinks beer daily. He’s an avid fan of beer and claims that he doesn’t get near as belligerently drunk from it as he does with stiffer drinks. When asked about what he considers to be “heavy drinking,” he says, “Drinking a lot, in my opinion, is more than 10 beers in five hours.” For him, eight beers in four hours is considered an average night.

Even though the student’s father is an alcoholic, he feels like he doesn’t have a problem.“I don’t need it to function or anything,” he says. “It’s not like I’m thinking about it right now.” When asked why he drinks, he says he drinks for the taste. But he doesn’t forget to mention that the buzz is part of the enjoyment as well. “I think everyone wants that bit of mind alteration, whatever it is,” he says. “Even cigarettes are euphoric.”

Alcohol and the Institute

When it comes to enforcing alcohol related offences at RIT, the Center for Student Conduct (CSC) handles the disciplinary action. According to the CSC’s Alcohol and Drug Policy, the type of charge received dictates the level of punishment. Simple possession of alcohol starts with disciplinary probation for the first offense, and a third offense can lead to suspension or removal from housing. Instances like hazing or supplying alcohol to minors result in suspension, and driving while intoxicated results in suspension and immediate referral to law enforcement. Public Safety has the right to terminate any event on campus and take the appropriate actions if they feel that New York State law is being violated. Parties are often broken up as a result of noise complaints, yet it is up to the discretion of the officer to evacuate a building or issue a warning. The building’s housing occupancy limits, listed on the housing contracts signed upon move-in, also factor into how the officer will respond.

After the student deals with the CSC, they most likely receive a letter from Student Conduct or the Center for Residence Life within the next 48 hours referring them to Pelc. It’s not mandatory, but it is strongly recommended. It’s a mission that Pelc, a certified New York State substance abuse counselor, takes to heart. “I can’t make anyone stop drinking, but it can develop into a disease in the future. There’s no cure for it,” she explains. “Binge drinking is consistent and constant. It’s always there, it’s always going to happen.” And while she can’t stop it, she stays fully committed to helping anyone who needs it.

She begins with an assessment of the student and the incident to try and understand what went wrong. From then on, it’s up to the student to decide if they would like to see her again. Many do. Pelc claims that education is a big part of the process when it comes to helping students. Getting them information on how alcohol affects the body, and the amount it takes to impair them based on their weight and gender really opens a lot of students eyes to how to handle themselves when or if they drink in the future. She is currently working with some of the Greek organizations to educate them on how to respond if someone does exhibit signs of alcohol poisoning, including CPR training.

She also stresses the “Good Samaritan” policy, which protects callers requesting medical assistance for intoxicated friends or classmates from getting into disciplinary trouble. Before the policy, the Institute feared that people wouldn’t call for help if a friend was dangerously drunk to avoid getting “busted”.

Pelc operates as a therapist and counselor and tries to be as supportive as she can. There are over 300 Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) meetings in Rochester every week, including the oldest AA meeting group on any college campus in the U.S., which was founded right here at RIT. They meet Sunday at 11 a.m. in the Bamboo Room on the second floor of the Campus Center (CPC, 03). Pelc often escorts students to their first AA meetings if they decide to go. “It can be a little scary the first time,” she says. “I try to go and be supportive. A lot of people have gotten sober in that room.”