The University of Wisconsin-Madison has started enforcing a policy of parental notification for any student who is intoxicated to the point of needing to be taken to a detox center.  According to the University, the goal of the policy is to get at the root of emotional or mental problems causing binge drinking, and to involve parents in the recovery and treatment of the student.  Other colleges and universities are looking into Wisconsin’s protocol, and might even adopt the rule themselves.

I am in two minds about this policy.  I know that if the University of Michigan had this policy in its residence halls when I was written up for intoxication during my freshman year, I would have been terrified of the wrath—and disappointment—of my mother. Over the subsequent years, I saw many more such incidents—friends who would drive drunk themselves rather than call a parent for a ride, friends who would incur thousands of dollars of hospital fees rather than risk having their drunkeness show up on their parents’ insurance statement.  Many parents, particularly those of extremely high-achieving students, refuse to believe that their son or daughter would even engage in excessive drinking.

But overall, I think the policy is a good idea.  Despite the fact that I believe that college students are adults and should be treated as such, many (even most at some elite schools) are supported financially almost 100% by their parents.  Simply the fear of knowing a parent might get a phone call the next day could be a strong deterrent from taking that next shot.

However, Wisconsin reports uncertain results of the policy.  The number of students brought to detox centers is actually up since last year, before the policy was instated.  But according to a dean, the goal isn’t simply reduction of the numbers, but increased awareness and involvement among parents about the behavior.  “We’re not calling home to tattle…[w]e’re calling to ask parents to be partners with us. We are saying that we’re concerned, and want to work on your child making better choices for the future. We do want the students to know there are consequences, but our goal isn’t to be harsh and punitive. It’s to make sure this behavior doesn’t happen again.”

Binge drinking is nothing new—the only thing that may be new is the name.  Plenty of our older relatives or acquaintances probably engaged in binge drinking regularly, without it being labeled (or condemned) as such.  And of course, injury and death either directly or indirectly related to alcohol have occurred at colleges probably since the first institute of higher learning was established.  But as colleges today are increasingly becoming interested in more than just the academic success of students, many schools are realizing that a hands-off approach to binge drinking will not suffice.

Furthermore, the culture of alcohol consumption in this country, particularly among young people, is also at the root of the problem.  Many college students will not be legally able to have an alcoholic drink until their senior year (I was one of those unlucky ones).  This misguided law, brought forth by Mothers Against Drunk Driving, does nothing to actually encourage responsible drinking.  Rather, it makes drinking into a subversive, secret activity, which leads to behavior such as drinking in isolation or drunk driving that is truly destructive.  But as the laws are not going to change anytime soon, maybe Wisconsin’s parental notification policy is one tool to combat binge drinking.