Connections
A Newsletter for the Viterbo College Community Vol. 12 No 33 April 26, 1999
Alcohol Awareness Week activities 1999
Monday, April 26
Mock Arrest: simulation of a drink/drive arrest.
Presidential Proclamation in Student Union
Free movie, When a Man Loves a Woman, and information about helping someone with a drinking problem. 79:30 p.m. in the Student Union. Coordinated by the Psychology Club.
Tuesday, April 27
Health Displays in the Union from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., Sponsored by students in Nursing 280 class.
MADD Speaker from 7 to 8 p.m. in the campus church, followed by candle lighting ceremony. First hand accounts of the pain and losses caused by drinking and driving. Coordinated by Connect Club.
Wednesday, April 28
Health Displays in Murphy Center from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., coordinated by students in Nursing 280 class.
Fatal Vision: A Drink/Drive Experiential Activity, noon to late afternoon in front of SAC. Sponsor: Connect Club.
Alcohol, Drugs, and Sexual Assault presentation by Gundersen Lutheran staff, 6:307:30 pm in the SDC.
Thursday, April 29 The Alcohol Wizard will canvas the campus asking students factual questions about alcohol. Questions are based on information found on posters by Sigma Pi Delta and at nursing student booths in Murphy Center and the Union.
Memorial for Nathan Kapfer at 3 p.m. at the small parking lot near the FAC. Biology and chemistry departments will be placing a memorial plaque near the trees they planted in Nathan’s memory.
Spring Swing Dance from 8 p.m. to midnight in the Cafeteria; music for all tastes and dancing styles, sponsored by RSB and SAB.
Mock Cocktails served by Residents Life Staff and floor residents in the cafeteria during the dance.
Friday, April 30
Brats with free ’beer—rootbeer, that is—in the Courtyard, 11:30 am1 pm; Sponsored by the Criminal Justice Club.
Stress Management Tips, 11:30 coordinated by SDC.
Spring Commencement
The spring commencement ceremony is at 10 a.m., on Sunday, May 16, at the La Crosse Center. Please plan to assemble and line up in the hall to the right by 9:30 a.m. There are 310 graduates. All full-time faculty and professional personnel are expected to attend graduation in academic attire.
The Baccalaureate Mass will be held at 5:30 p.m. on Sat. May 15 at the Maria Angelorum Chapel. All are welcome to attend.
A reception will follow commencement in the lobby of the La Crosse Center (outside if weather permits). You may extend your congratulations to the graduates at this time.
If you have any questions, please contact any of the committee members: Sally Emerson, chair, Amy Gleason, Debra Anderson, Rose Kreutz, Jane Mrozek, Tim Posey, Jeff Stolz, Linda Malick, S. Jeanine Luger, Michelle Wolfrom, May ’00, Derek Jackson, May ’99, Renee Heuss, May ’99.
Bits and pieces
The class on Homelessness is sponsoring a soup lunch for Kosovo refugees TODAY from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the FAC lobby.
Student Nurse Recognition Day for all nursing students: 3:10 to 4 p.m. on Apr. 29 in Marian Hall Cafeteria.
Student requests for a grade of incomplete spring 1999: Page 28 of the 1997-99 catalog identifies the requirements and procedures for a student to request a grade of incomplete. The deadline for requesting an Incomplete and submitting the completed form to Wayne Wojciechowski is Thurs., May 6. If you have any questions, please call Wayne Wojciechowski, x3085.
The results of the recent Administrative Assembly elections: Vice-President: Mark Franz; Secretary: Amy Gleason; Administrative Concerns and Development Committee (ACDC): Brent Brigson, Anne Ellefson, Melissa Growt, Beth Moore; Nominations & Elections Committee: Brent Brigson, Scott Johns; Institutional Advancement Representative: Barry Fried.
Annual Employee Recognition Dinner: Thurs., May 6. Tickets are on sale for $10 at the Business Office, until Apr. 28.
Casual Dress Friday, April 30 Jeans Day Proceeds go to Gamma Sigma Sigma, AND Habitat for Humanity. Please pay your $1 at MC Reception Desk if you are participating in Casual Dress Day.
24 hour security: call x3911.
Employee Assistance Center (EAC) is for all Viterbo employees and their families. Contact Franciscan-Skemp (608) 791-9530., (800) 493-3960.
Class cancellations: Teacher class cancellation line: 796-3080 or 796-3190. Students call for class cancellations: 796-3200.
Connections is published each Monday by the Public Relations office. Copy deadline is noon Thursday. Send your announcements via campus mail to the public relations office, MC228, E-mail sakluess@ mail.viterbo.edu. An edited version of each issue of Connections can be found on the Web at www.viterbo.edu at "Campus News."
Arts & Entertainment
A Piece of My Heart presented in February during Diversity Days will be performed once again at 12:10 p.m. on Friday, April 30 in the FAC Recital Hall. This Reader’s Theatre production explores the experiences of nurses and other women who served in Vietnam. All are invited to attend this 40 minute production. If you have questions, call Janet McLean, x3792.
The Viterbo All Student Show is on exhibit through May 6 in the third floor FAC Gallery. The show includes work from Freshman to Senior Art Students in all areas and media.
On exhibit in the Viterbo Library Gallery is work from Viterbo alumni, Paul Hartwig. Paul’s paintings are developed from his appreciation for stain glass windows. Luminous colors create the essence of light qualities created by sunlight through stained glass.
Get ready to have a swashbuckling good time as the Omaha Theater brings to Viterbo its critically acclaimed adaptation of Treasure Island.
Pirates, stolen maps, battles, betrayal, adventure, and of course the infamous Long John Silver, combine for non-stop action in Robert Louis Stevenson’s classic story about a boy’s search for buried treasure on a distant and mysterious island.
The Omaha Theater Company adaptation of this classic tale is part of the Viterbo College Arts For Young America and will be performed at 3 p.m. on Sunday, May 9, in the Main Theatre.
For ticket information, call the Viterbo College Box Office, x3100.
Viterbo people
Dick Ruppel, English, has been invited to give a paper at the 25th Annual International Conference of the Joseph Conrad Society (U.K.), held at The University of Kent at Canterbury, July 8-11. The Conference brings together the Joseph Conrad Society (U.K.), the Henry James Society of America, and the Ford Madox Ford Society of Great Britain. Dick’s paper is entitled "'An Outpost of Progress,' Popular Colonialist Fiction, and Conrad's Magic Naturalism,"and he received a $1,000 Faculty Development Grant to help defray expenses.
Stacy Glidden, a junior chemistry major, has been accepted to an NSF-Sponsored 1999 Summer Research Program in Solid State Chemistry. She will be going to the University of Colorado in Boulder for nine weeks to study reactions on ice surfaces related to the problem of ozone depletion. The internship wraps up with a student research symposium at the U. of Southern California where she will present her results.
Brian Stender has accepted a chemistry teaching assistantship at the University of Minnesota starting in the fall. He will pursue the Ph.D. degree in analytical chemistry.
Brian Stender and Matt Solverson, chemistry majors, gave presentations at the 29th Annual Undergraduate Research Symposium in Chemistry at Carroll College in Waukesha on April 17. Brian gave a poster presentation entitled: "Near Infrared Studies of Hydrogen Bonding in Dilute HDO Solutions Containing Perchlorate and Nitrate Salts." Matt gave an oral presentation entitled: "The Effects of R-SNO Groups and R-SH Groups on the Mediator Ru(NH3)6Cl3 Using Cyclic Voltammetry."
Campus Ministry News
by Father Tom O’Neill
Thanks to all who participated in this year’s Operation Rice Bowl during the Lenten season. To date we have collected $200 to assist those who hunger. If you have not yet turned in your "rice bowl," please do so soon.
Rest In Peace: Please remember those who have recently died: the grandfathers of Andrew Wink and Eric Tweed. May they rest in peace.
The April Food of the Month for the WAFER food pantry is fruit or juice. A gift of $20 will help purchase a bag of groceries. All nonperishable foods are accepted. WAFER also appreciates grocery bags and collects Cub Foods receipts. Contributions may be left in the vestibule at the entrance to the College Church
Check out our Web pages for announcements and calendar information @ www.viterbo.edu.
Attention faculty: A program on Kosovo
The history and current conflicts in Kosovo and Iraq will be presented by UW-L faculty, staff, and guest speakers from 4 to 6 p.m. on Thurs., Apr. 29 in 259 Cartwright Center, UW-L. Please encourage students to attend. If you have questions, contact S. Anita Beskar, x3171.
V-Hawk sports update
by Jerry Smith
Circle K charity game a success
It was a classic case of old versus young, athleticism versus experience, youthful exuberance versus calculated strategy. And, it was a way to help a charity near and dear to Viterbo College’s heart called Place of Grace.
The 20 athletes and wannabes who participated were happy to lay it on the line to help this great cause, even if it meant that getting from point A to point B was a little slower the next day.
I’m talking about last Friday’s (April 16) Circle K charity basketball game, which pitted student members of the club, and a few non-members, against an older, slower group of Viterbo faculty, staff and administrators.
The game was close in the first half with the lead changing hands many times. But after a long, and sometimes painful 20 minutes for some, Circle K held the halftime lead, thanks to the hot shooting of Adam Neumann.
But if ever there was a moral to a story, it would be this: Never count out a group of players with over 100 years of playing experience between them.
That’s right. After a first half in which most of the old-timers, including myself, were pacing themselves, it was time to let it all hang out in the final 20 minutes.
There was Brent Brigson, who put on a three-point shooting clinic. And Darrell Pofahl, whose power moves to the basket were almost unstoppable. And let’s not forget Ron Amel and Marv Friedewald, who ran the offenses like they’ve been doing it for almost four decades. Oh yeah, they have been! And finally, there’s something to be said about Keith Knutson. Leave it to Keith to show the world that there is never a situation or an event, not even a basketball game, where the layered look is not appropriate.
Seriously, while everyone involved had a good time, we were all there for a good cause. And while event organizers would like to have seen more folks in the stands, they were happy raising nearly $200 and a few boxes of non-perishable food items for a place that helps the needy everyday.
It seems the event was so successful in organizers’ eyes, there is talk about making it an annual event. I’m already conditioning for next year.
New or improved on the Viterbo web page
An up-dated site devoted to the D.B. Reinhart Institute for Ethics in Leadership is now up on the web (http://www.viterbo.edu/ Institute/). It contains new information and an area to keep informed on upcoming events sponsored by the Institute.
There is also a new Baseball page (http://www.viterbo.edu/students/ss/athletics/baseball.html) on Viterbo’s web site. It contains information on coaches, players, the new field, and a schedule of upcoming games.
In addition, the Academics index page (http://www.viterbo.edu/academic/) has been given a new look. And improvements have been made in the area of Campus Publications: the Analytic Teaching page has been updated for the newest issue (http://www.viterbo.edu/campnews/camppub/analytic/index.htm), and excerpts from Touchstone magazine are now available on a web page (http://www. viterbo.edu/campnews/camppub/touchstone/).
Finally, be sure and check our Viterbo College home page for information on events and activities coming up in our community. If you are interested in having your event in the "news" spot on our home page, contact Pat Kerrigan, x3041. If you or your department have an interest in creating a new web page or updating the page you have, contact Loretta in the PR office, x3040.
News you’ll notice
Anne Ellefson, AODA Prevention Specialist
Alcohol awareness week begins today. Prevention perspective: reality check. College life has become synonymous with party life. Popular perception portrays students moving from party to party in an alcohol-induced fog. Media depicts alcohol abuse, often humorously, as a collegiate norm. Family folklore retells blowout college parties from the past. Graduation cards, advertisements, mugs, and t-shirt slogans perpetuate the association between heavy drinking and the collegiate experience. News magazine programs focus on tragic cases of such abuse ending in death.
Sensational stories noted and remembered, while more typical stories remain untold. Untold stories include that of 20 students drinking alcohol in a reasonably responsible and healthy fashion; they get upstaged by a couple drunken party goers displaying loud, off-the-wall behaviors. Party night annals make no mention of students who spent the evening studying or working a second part-time job.
Certainly, don't hold your breath for special reports about the full one-third of American college students who choose to abstain. The resounding silence about that story may be part of the reason that college students perceive only about two percent of college students choose not to consume alcohol, an underestimation making it harder to abstain for those choosing that path.
While numerous factors contribute to the persistent myth that college is a four-year party, this myth, like most, reflects a bit of the truth. College students do drink more than their non-collegiate peers do. How much more and how often are the pieces exaggerated and distorted, a distortion creating an environmental risk.
"When in Rome, do as the Romans do" is a cliche alluding to the influence of norms on behavior. While human behavior is more complex than any cliche can capture, behaviors are influenced by one's environment.
Too often, students enter college perceiving alcohol abuse is expected and accepted. When that perception is coupled with a deep-seated need to make friends, fit in, and adjust to a stressful transition, high-risk drinking is predictable, not surprising. Certainly, individuals are always responsible for their personal choices. However, the prevalent norms, whether real or perceived, are guideposts for new students.
Research demonstrates that overestimation of student drinking and drunkenness can become a self-fulfilling prophecy. When college students think everyone drinks, drinking rates rise due to influences from what turns out to be imaginary peers.
Unfortunately, on every campus surveyed by the Core Institute, regardless of drinker type or level of use, the students thought the campus norm was greater than their own personal use. While 40 percent of college students reported binge drinking on the Core survey, 70 percent thought their peers were binge drinkers.
Such misperception has a powerful negative influence on students' behaviors, especially because portrayals of healthy role models are conspicuously absent.
The good news is that providing accurate normative information has led to declines in binge drinking.
Pilot projects have incorporated social marketing and normative campaigns focusing on the other side of the headlines. While nationally 40 percent of college students did report binge drinking, 60 percent didn't binge drink. While 30 percent of college students reported missing a class due to drinking, 70 percent have not done so. Accurate norming tells the untold stories of the 82 percent of college students who prefer not to have illicit drugs present at social events, of the 70 percent of college students who have not gotten into a fight or argument while drinking, and of the 67 percent of college students who have not driven under the influence of alcohol.
The typical college student is busy studying, doing volunteer work, going to class, helping friends, working, exercising, dating, writing papers, talking with friends, playing sports, and participating in campus activities. The typical college student drinks moderately, if he or she chooses to drink. This is not the stuff of television specials.
While most of us don't influence movie releases or newspaper headlines, we do control our own messages. That control can communicate accurate norms-—most college students don't binge drink; most aren't impressed by public drunkenness; most are making low-risk alcohol choices; most are busy being responsible with work, friends, and classes. We can preface our remarks about a concern with the message that "while 80 percent of the students are doing okay, we are still worried about the other 20 percent". We can consciously work to draw attention to the good works and choices most Viterbo students are making, ensuring these acts get as much recognition and publicity as the occasional destructive acts. A first-year student overhearing such comments and viewing such publicity forms a different picture of expectations and norms, key components in behavior determination.
Make no mistake, alcohol and other drugs pose serious problems for campuses. High drinking rates are incompatible with mission statements addressing advanced learning, personal growth, and healthy lifestyles. Too many people are harmed by the high rates of binge drinking. Dialogues must begin and continue about strategies for changing alcohol abuse on college campuses.
However, we must also be cognizant of the fact that when we make the bad news the sole focus of such dialogue, we may inadvertently perpetuate norms that lead to more bad news. Focusing exclusively on the negative side of the statistics and stories contributes to more students drinking too much alcohol, in part due to the unfounded belief the "everyone is doing it." With good intentions, we contribute to the "reign of error."