UMaine/Orono Police Team Up for Prevention
Contact: Media contact: Joe Carr at (207) 581-3571
ORONO — The University of Maine office of Substance Abuse Prevention Services and the Orono Police Department have developed a new program that will focus on prevention of alcohol abuse near the UMaine campus.
Funding for the $6,000 initiative, which will feature increased patrols to prevent underage alcohol purchases, illegal transportation of alcohol, operating under the influence of alcohol violations and the use of fake identifications, comes from a two-year $40,000 grant UMaine received last year from the federal Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP). The grant is intended to fund programs that reduce high-risk drinking and enforce drinking laws among students.
“Primary prevention of alcohol problems is key to a substantial, effective and comprehensive approach to changing dangerous student drinking behavior,” says Robert Dana, UMaine’s dean of students.
“It’s a great opportunity,” says Orono Police Sergeant Josh Ewing. “It could not come at a better time of year to boost preventative measures”
“Being proactive in problem areas before the holiday season arrives is our goal,” adds Orono Police Chief Robert O’Halloran.
The project design is based on the Higher Education Center for Alcohol and Other Drug Prevention’s environmental management model, which focuses on changing the legal, economic, and social factors in the campus and community environment that may encourage high-risk drinking. The goal is to bring about long-term, systemic change in how college high-risk drinking is addressed at both the state and local level.
For more information, contact Lauri Sidelko, director of Substance Abuse Prevention Services at UMaine, at 207-581-1423