Alcohol abuse education prevents addiction
Mutinkhe Kaunda
As part of their efforts to educate students about the harmful effects of drugs and alcohol, MCC’s Peervention volunteers coordinated workshops during National Collegiate Alcohol Awareness and Peervention Volunteer Week Oct. 20 to Oct. 23. Issues addressed included current addiction data, challenges addicts face and prevention of DUIs.
Guest speakers included Torre Valentine, a prevention development coordinator, Lourdes Valdez, a community education specialist, both of Community Bridges, and author and radio host Gretta Kane, who shared her own personal experiences with addiction.
“Alcohol and drug abuse is the No. 1 reason students drop out of school,” said Christa Adams referring to data released by the U.S. Department of Education and the Arizona Higher Education Consortium.
Adams has served as adviser for MCC’s Peervention Volunteer Program since 1992. It is a research-based and student-driven volunteer program designed to provide alcohol and drug abuse prevention information on campus.
Peervention volunteers are registered for Service-Learning Volunteerism for Counseling and Personal Development (CDP282) classes and are certified to be peer educators through Boost Alcohol Consciousness Concerning the Health of University Students (BACCHUS), a network of students and advisors working with peers on campuses throughout the world.
“The reason that people take drugs is because they have never been taught how to think about things in positive ways,” said Udayan Dave, a 33-year old BACCHUS certified MCC student,
“Peers can make a connection [with other students]. because they are same status and this makes students more comfortable.”
Peers plans to host podcasts that will provide personal perspectives on alcohol and drug abuse, according to Bessie Smith, an MCC student that recently joined the program.
Students wishing to volunteer should call (480) 461-7588 and make an appointment to see Christa Adams.
