4 Tips to Prevent Drinking and Driving on Spring Break
It’s never too early to think of Spring Break, even while mother nature has winter in full swing, but preparing in advance for a safe Spring Break can help keep your students out of danger when the week of vacation finally rolls around.
Alcohol awarness education can help give your students an understanding of the serious consequences that may ensue from bouts of heavy drinking. Wether it be the potentially deadly combination of drinking and driving or the consumption of copius amounts of alcohol—opening the discussion about alcohol has positive benefits all around.
The University of Wisconsin conducted a study on Spring Break drinking and found that 75 percent of college males and 44 percent of college females were intoxicated daily while on Spring Break. Of those students studied, half of the males reported that they had passed out at least once from intoxication during Spring Break, and 40 percent of the females reported the same.
Mark Sterner, a CAMPUSPEAK alcohol awareness speaker, has first hand experience of Spring Break gone tragically awry. On the last night of vacation, Mark and four of his best friends, and fraternity brothers, decided that the least drunk would drive home. The next morning, three of the men were dead, and Mark lay in the hospital critically injured and facing three felony counts of DUI manslaughter. Instead of being the first in his family to graduate college, Mark ended up as the first member of his family to go to prison for his role in the tragic death of his three friends.
Drinking and driving can be a deadly combination, which unfortunately, will affect many young men and women. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration report that for college-aged students, the number one cause of death is motor vehicles crashes with nearly 30 percent involving alcohol.
Share these four tips to help keep students safe from alcohol related incidents this Spring Break.
1. If you drink, don’t drive no matter how little you think you’ve had.
2. Don’t let someone you know get behind the wheel if they’ve been drinking.
3. Leave your car parked during Spring Break. Most Spring Break towns have plenty of alternative options other than driving for getting around town.
4. Come up with a plan on how you’re going to get home before you go out.
Mark’s story provides an honest and upfront account of the deadly consequences of drinking and driving. His keynote, DUI: A Powerful Lesson, is a great education tool for any Safe Spring Break, alcohol awareness, athletic or Fraternity & Sorority Life programming.
Visit campuspeak.com/sterner to learn more about Mark and his available keynote.
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