Colleges Step Up Parental Notification of Alcohol Incidents

A growing number of colleges are alerting parents whenever their children under age 21 are involved in alcohol-related incidents at school.

The Washington Post reported Feb. 24 that more schools now alert parents whenever underage students are caught drinking, drunk, or possessing alcohol. Previously, schools like Virginia Tech would only inform parents if the student’s alcohol use resulted in arrest or a hospital visit.

In some cases, the policy changes were the result of alcohol-related tragedies on campus; in others, schools cited concerns about injuries, deaths, alcoholism, and lawsuits.

Colleges also have realized that parents can be very effective in changing student drinking behavior. “Students are more concerned about their parents being notified than they are of the legal consequences,” said Edward Spencer, vice president for student affairs at Virginia Tech.