Shane EvansThe Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board awarded the Office of Health and Wellness Education an $11,500 grant fund over a year period that began on July 1 in support of its continuing mission to prevent and regulate underage drinking at colleges across the state..
Cabrini was one of 63 organizations statewide that received the grant money, which totaled $664,000 for the entire initiative.
Christine Hyson, the director of the Health and Wellness Education office, stated that the grant gives her office the ability to do further good for the campus and its inhabitants.
“The receipt of this grant provides Cabrini College and the Office of Health and Wellness Education with an enormous opportunity to further address underage and high-risk drinking by our students,” Hyson said. “We were fortunate to receive an $8,000 individual grant and $11,500 consortium grant last year, so this ensuing grant allows us to continue making strides with regard to alcohol education and prevention.”
With the grant, PLCB has increased its efforts to keep this growing problem under control. With a 34 percent increase over last year’s funds, this grant is the largest allowance to date.
The money that Cabrini is receiving will be put to work in many ways by Hyson and the Health and Wellness Education Office, ways that Hyson believes will really help the college fight the growing problem.
“One of the most important components of these grants is our campus committee, known as Partnership for Alcohol Education, which formed in September 2005,” Hyson said. “The committee meets monthly to discuss alcohol-related issues, concerns and opportunities for collaboration, research and education. A few of the developments from last year’s committee work include revised alcohol policies and sanctions, the hiring of a part-time alcohol and other drug counselor and increased substance-free social events on campus.”
But that’s not all the grant from the PLCB will be doing to help Cabrini. According to Hyson, the grant will be put towards many other smaller programs, which, when combined, show how strong the cause is and how much really can be done.
“Besides the continuation of Partnership for Alcohol Education committee work, PLCB grant funding for the upcoming year will help to subsidize various projects including alcohol assessments, promoting substance-free events, disseminating information on campus alcohol policies, social norms marketing campaign, 21st birthday cards program and more.”
Another key gain of the grant that indirectly helps Hyson’s office is the fact that some of the money will go towards research and gathering data on underage drinking and high risk consumption, which then can be analyzed for important trends and patterns. Hyson and her staff will then take those results and will be better able to come up with strategies and projects that will further combat the issue.
The grant has helped Cabrini in the past, and the increase this year will further that. Hyson and everybody at the Health and Wellness Education office is grateful for what the PLCB has done for Cabrini now and in the past.
“The Office of Health and Wellness Education is truly thankful for the PLCB’s generosity,” Hyson said. “We’re also thankful and in agreement with their vision for safer, healthier college campuses, including Cabrini College.”
With all the positives the grant will be bestowing on Cabrini College, through the Health and Wellness Education Office, Cabrini has an added ally in the struggle to quell underage drinking and high risk consumption, one of the most prevalent obstacles the college has to face.
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