5 drunken students hospitalized

Five students, including four freshmen, were arrested and sent to Bloomington Hospital for alcohol intoxication this weekend, bringing the total number of alcohol-related student hospitalizations to 14 since Wednesday. \nIU Police Department officials said the number of cases is abnormally high, even for Welcome Week. Most cases involved a student who was either unconscious and unresponsive or vomiting because of intoxication. \nIUPD Capt. Jerry Minger said police must consider an individual's well-being when dealing with alcohol arrests. \n"When somebody is so intoxicated that they have no idea where they are, I think any reasonable person would determine that that's a serious situation," he said. \nAmong the hospitalized students were: a male student found lying in the parking lot behind Kilroy's Bar & Grill; a male freshman found unconscious at Teter Quad early Sunday morning; a male freshman found unconscious at McNutt Quad early Sunday morning; and a student who re-injured his shoulder after consuming alcohol while on pain medication for the shoulder. \nAdditionally, police found an intoxicated male student vomiting while unconscious in a Teter Quad formal area. After a residence hall manager told police the male student might have been drinking at Sigma Pi fraternity, Dean of Students Dick McKaig visited the fraternity house to investigate. \nFraternity members told McKaig they had found the subject passed out on the sidewalk and offered him a ride home, according to police reports. McKaig said there was no evidence of any unlawful drinking when he visited the fraternity. \nMcKaig said the cause of last week's activity is unclear, but said there might be more students who are unfamiliar with the effects of alcohol in this year's freshman class. He said several recent studies show a slight decrease in the number of 2006 high school graduates who drank regularly during their senior year. \n"I just don't know if it's anything specific that we can put our finger on," he said. "I'm not of the impression that there were more parties. Clearly, there are some people that are abusing their new freedoms. There are consequences for that." \nDee Owens, director of the IU Alcohol and Drug Information Center, said she is unsure what might have caused the spike in dangerous alcohol use. \n"That could stem from any number of things," she said. "Could there be more parties? Could there be more students who are already on the road to trouble with alcohol?" \nOwens said she hopes the 14 cases were "only a blip," but she said a continuing trend of alcohol-related hospitalizations would warrant further investigation by the University. A consistent increase in this kind of activity can have significant consequences for students and IU, she said. \n"There are two kinds of problems that come from misuse of alcohol," she said. "One is long-term health problems. The second one is impairment, and that is what gets students dead in short order. That's what causes students to fall off balconies. The dean of students and our entire office does not take this sort of thing lightly." \nAfter police arrested and hospitalized a student found in the parking lot of Phi Gamma Delta fraternity last week, IUPD Capt. Keith Cash met with the InterFraternity Council's Major Issues Committee Friday evening, McKaig said.\n"These tend to be students who return to the residence halls and indicate that they were drinking at (a fraternity)," he said. "That doesn't necessarily mean the information they are giving is correct." \nCash said the committee is trying to be proactive in preventing alcohol abuse.\n"I wouldn't say it was a greek problem," he said. "But I thought it might be a good time to talk to them and see if they could come up with some solutions."\nIU employs several proactive and responsive programs to stem the tide of student binge drinking. Students reported through the campus judicial system are screened for signs of alcoholism and given information on how alcohol abuse affects their health. \nResidential Programs and Services places advertisements in dorms warning students of the dangers of irresponsible alcohol use, and resident advisers are trained to discuss the issue with students, Owens said. \n"The unfortunate thing is that students have to stick their head above the radar for that to happen," she said. "I would like to see every student get good alcohol education as a requirement for entrance into Indiana University. We could do that in two to three hours." \nIU officials said they will continue to monitor the situation. \n"It's an issue we're very concerned about," McKaig said. "I urge students to use caution in their own behavior and be attentive to their friends' behavior"