Thousands of Massachusetts college students returned to campus this month, and while many students live healthy college lifestyles, many others struggle with the pressures and consequences of heavy alcohol consumption, including preventable deaths. In 1997, following the tragic deaths of two Massachusetts students, the MBHE placed restrictions on drinking at all state colleges and university campuses, and required colleges to periodically report compliance. The new restrictions enacted by the MBHE included the following elements: (1) Restricting alcohol to specific, supervised locations; (2) Requiring advance registration of social events involving alcohol; (3) Restricting legal possession of alcohol to separate residence halls for students age 21 or older; (4) Providing alcohol education and prevention programs; (5) Establishing procedures for enforcement of all federal, state, local and campus regulations; (6) Requiring that colleges work with neighboring cities and towns to enforce alcohol laws; (7) New sanctions on student violators, up to and including expulsion from college; and (8) Parental notification of all alcohol policy violations by underage students.

The study specifically found that activities of campus security officers to limit alcohol possession and use on campus were related to student drinking rates. Campus security officers are likely to interact directly with student drinking while enforcing alcohol policies, and their reports of stricter alcohol policy enforcement were associated with lower levels of heavy drinking.

''It was interesting to see how students viewed their school's enforcement of alcohol policies,'' said Dr. John Knight, director of the Center for Substance Abuse Research at Children's Hospital Boston. ''It is clear that many of the colleges should review their alcohol control policies, consider greater enforcement, and provide more training and support to the officials dealing first-hand with enforcement.''

Knight and his colleagues were able to make a number of conclusions based on the results of their research, and they feel that although their study was observational, it does suggest a link between strict enforcement of alcohol policies and lower rates of underage drinking. The team plans to conduct a 2-year follow-up investigation into the effects of policy enforcement and student drinking.

The study was funded by the Substance Abuse Policy Research Program (SAPRP) of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. SAPRP funds policy research studies in alcohol, tobacco and drugs.