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- Four alcohol-related Minnesota college students deaths since October
- Minnesota administrators advocate for change in state student information privacy protection laws
- Federal law allows Marquette administrators to notify parents on second alcohol offense
- Medical expert says campus environmental policies should trump behavior policy
After the fourth alcohol-related death among Minnesota college students since October, some schools are pushing for a stricter parental notification policy as students return for the spring semester.
Administrators at Minnesota State University Moorhead and Minnesota State University Mankato are among those advocating for legislative change that would allow parents to be notified of all student alcohol violations, said Melinda Voss, spokeswoman for Minnesota State Colleges and Universities.
Minnesota State Colleges and Universities will meet Wednesday to discuss the group's official position on the issue.
"There have been several young people, not necessarily students enrolled at our colleges, but associated with our universities, that have died because of over consumption of alcohol," Voss said. "That has raised concerns about looking for more ways to prevent these tragedies."
Currently, the Minnesota Government Data Practices Act classifies drug and alcohol violations as "educational data." This prevents university officials from notifying parents of such offenses as a protection of privacy, Voss said.
Wisconsin State Colleges and Universities, including Marquette, adhere to the federal Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act. FERPA is looser than the Minnesota law, Voss said.
FERPA protects student privacy by restricting the release of information such as student grades. FERPA does not mandate campuses contact parents on the first alcohol offense, but allows the option to do so, said Susanne Williams, assistant to the president at MSUM and leader of a campus high-risk drinking reduction group.
Administrators at MSUM proposed to update the Data Practice Act so it corresponds to the federal law with regards to parental notification, Williams said.
FERPA states university officials can contact parents in an emergency situation such as hospitalization.
"But we are seeking to broaden that so we can contact parents when a violation of campus policy takes place," Williams said.
At Marquette, FERPA allows the university some flexibility of alcohol policy, said Mark McCarthy, assistant vice president for student affairs. Marquette officials choose not to notify parents on the first offense, he said.
"Our process is an educational one," McCarthy said. "We know students can make mistakes and our preference is to try to work with the student first."
Students are always notified through a letter after the first offense that their parents will be contacted on a second offense. Students have the opportunity to contact their parents first, McCarthy said.
Parents are notified of a second alcohol violation via letter if the student is found responsible through Marquette's conduct process.
Parents are also notified if the student requires hospitalization or endangers him or herself, or others, McCarthy said.
McCarthy said he thinks students and parents have been generally satisfied with Marquette's alcohol policy. McCarthy said he often receives phone calls from parents thanking him for notification.
But some experts agree that parental notification is not the only way to thwart alcohol-related death on college campuses.
Stephen Hargarten, professor and chairman of emergency medicine at the Medical College of Wisconsin, said he encourages universities to explore policies that complement behavioral policies.
Hargarten, who has published research on alcohol-related illness and injury in Milwaukee County, said college students often find themselves in an environment that encourages them to choose alcohol.
College campus are "relatively challenging" and "even overtly hostile" when it comes to encouraging students to make good choices, he said.
Hargarten said a strict notification policy like some Minnesota schools are proposing sends the wrong message to students who are exploring independence.
"It seems disappointing to expect college students to be mature and make good choices but then reprimand them by telling their parents," Hargarten said.
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