Oct. 19 through 26 is Student Wellness’ Alcohol Awareness Week. The week is a national collegiate movement, and colleges all across the country are programming on this topic. The purpose of the week is to educate students and help keep them safer when they make decisions regarding alcohol.

Programs held during the week addressed questions like, what are some strategies that can be used when drinking to decrease risk? What are signs of alcohol poisoning? Who should be contacted if there is evidence of alcohol poisoning? What is the colleges medical amnesty policy?

“We know students are going to have some experience with alcohol, whether it’s direct or indirect, your roommate your friends. [If] you are going to have some experience with alcohol in college, we want everyone to be educated on it,” Amanda Cheetham, Elizabethtown College’s health educator said.

During the week, there are multiple events scheduled for student and faculty members to attend. Events included at least two residence hall programs, one in Brinser Hall and one in the quads and apartments. Another event was a trivia and painting night which included alcohol education.

There will be an alcohol-free tailgate before the men’s soccer game, Saturday, Oct. 25, between 1 and 2 p.m. During the tailgate, there will be games and giveaways. The point of the tailgate is to prove that you can have fun without consuming alcohol.

To close the week, there will be a speaker named Matt Bellace coming to campus on Sunday, Oct. 26 at 7 p.m. in Leffler Chapel. Bellace is a speaker, comedian and psychologist with a doctorate. His talk is titled “How to Get High Naturally.” The program is expected to be informative and humorous. It focuses on natural highs and creating healthy habits in college.

“Matt Bellace will talk about how these things affect your brain and maybe what are some other things you can do to get the same feeling, euphoric feeling in your brain but by doing something that’s non-alcoholic or drugs,” Cheetham said.

Student Wellness is raising awareness about alcohol through these events, hoping to open a conversation and have people talk about this issue. Student Wellness provides programs throughout the year on these topics.

For example, there is a counseling group called “Over the Influence” run by one of the counselors for people who have experience with alcohol and are interested in learning how to “get over the influence,” instead of being under the influence.

The group meets every other Tuesday from 4 to 5 p.m. Students who have prior experience with alcohol and other drugs, or have a close family member or friend who has experience with addiction, are welcome to go and participate with the group.

“It is important that your perception of alcohol use is not true. It may seem like everyone is drinking all the time, or every weekend, but in reality, not everyone is,” Cheetham said.

One of the goals for the week is to teach students that the perceptions of alcohol use on campus are often incorrect. It is reported that one in four Etown students have never used alcohol, and two in five haven’t used it in the last month.

“It is important to know there are people on campus who aren’t doing it, and you just need to find them,” Cheetham explained.

Etown’s Student Wellness Advocacy Group, known as “SWAG,” has helped out with the week’s programming. They played a part in planning and working the events. The wellness advocates hope that by hosting large free events, like the tailgate and the comedian, students will want to get involved.

One of the messages that the office wanted to remind students of this week is if you do choose to drink, it is crucial to know the signs of alcohol poisoning. The signs of alcohol poisoning are vomiting, incoherence, temperature, absence of color, low breathing and seizures (VITALS.)

“If you notice signs of alcohol poisoning, you should call for help immediately. Call Campus Security to get help for your friend. The College’s medical amnesty policy is three C’s. Call immediately, care for and stay with the person who’s having the emergency and cooperate with the emergency officials,” Cheetham said.

More information about these events can be found on the student wellness page of the campus website.