Charleston, IL —  As college students settle in a new year at school or enter their freshman year, The Century Council, and Eastern Illinois University announced the use of a dynamic new interactive CD-ROM program designed to help college students stop the misuse of alcohol on campus, Alcohol 101 Plus™. At a press demonstration today in the LOCATION at Eastern Illinois University, PARTICIPANTS joined Shannon Adams of The Century Council, to announce that Eastern Illinois University will include the new program as part of ongoing efforts to prevent campus alcohol problems. Developed by The Century Council, a national not-for-profit organization funded by America’s leading distillers, Alcohol 101 Plus™ is available free-of-charge and over 2,000 colleges and universities across the country have requested the program to-date.

Set on a “virtual campus,” Alcohol 101 Plus™ specifically targets at-risk populations of the student body: Freshmen, Greeks, student-athletes, and judicial policy offenders. Through interactive video scenarios users have an opportunity to make “virtual” decisions for “virtual” characters. for example, users can visit a first-year dorm and choose whether or not the freshman character takes a drink, or visit the off-campus bar and decide whether the basketball star should take a drink, days before “the big game.” When the wrong decision is chosen on the virtual campus, students are presented with the consequences of their bad decision.

“I am proud to be here today to launch The Century Council’s Alcohol 101 Plus™ program at Eastern Illinois University, and I am confident that it will be an essential and effective tool in the fight against the misuse of alcohol by college students,” said PRINCIPAL. “While the good news is the percentage of students who reported daily drinking has declined by 41 percent proportionally from 1982 to 2000, it is no secret that college students drink alcohol. the statistics are alarming. Nationwide, among college students under the age of 21, 82 percent report using alcohol within the past year and 69 percent report using alcohol within the last 30 days. for the sake of Illinois’ future, we must help our young people make safe and informed choices about alcohol.”

Representing an over million dollars investment, the creation of Alcohol 101 Plus™ brought about the broadest alcohol industry-government partnership designed to prevent the misuse of alcohol on college campuses including the U.S. Department of Education; National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Additionally, more than 50 on-campus practitioners,
student focus groups, as well as representatives from; National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA); and the BACCHUS and GAMMA Peer Education Network.

“The fact, that 80% of freshman report that they have consumed alcohol in the past year, consuming nearly 6 drinks a week, is a fact of college life that must be countered with effective education. by systematically incorporating this CD into orientation programs, fraternity gatherings and athletic programs, we hope to have a significant influence on students’ ability to make safe and responsible decisions about alcohol,” said Adams of The Century Council.

Alcohol 101 Plus™ is user friendly, entertaining and informative. in addition to video scenarios and “pop-up” messages, the CD includes an interactive game developed by SONY, b4udrink, which tests a user’s knowledge about how alcohol affects the body, friends and school, sex, and the truths and consequences of college drinking. the CD-ROM also includes a “Virtual Bar,” where a user can “virtually” drink and obtain personalized information on the impact of alcohol on their individual blood alcohol concentration and a “Virtual Brain,” which conveys information about the physical and mental affects of alcohol.

Cutting edge education tools, like Alcohol 101 Plus™, can help coaches, teachers, and administrators help prevent underage drinking among college students. Students perceive that their peers are drinking more than they actually are…On average, a majority (63 percent) of college students think their peers on campus use alcohol three or more times a week. Yet, by comparison, only 24% report they have used alcohol three or more times within the past year. We must continue to fight underage drinking and the misuse of alcohol to keep our students safe and alcohol-free. the entire campus community must become involved in this important fight.

The Century Council’s mission is to promote responsible decision-making regarding drinking or non-drinking of beverage alcohol and to discourage all forms of irresponsible consumption through education, communications, research, law enforcement, and other programs. Recognizing over thirteen years of progress, America’s leading distillers, Allied Domecq Spirits & Wine North America, Bacardi U.S.A., Inc., Brown-Forman, DIAGEO, Future Brands LLC, and Pernod Ricard USA, have promoted the Council’s mission by investing over $130 million in its programs to fight drunk driving and underage drinking. for more information about Alcohol 101 Plus™ or The Century Council, or to order a copy of the program free-of-charge, please visit www.alcohol101plus.org or www.centurycouncil.org.