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May
13, 2003
Campus
cards wish students a happy, safe 21st birthday
Along with mail from family and friends, students at California
State University, Sacramento are now getting cards from campus for
their 21st birthdays.
The cards are hand-signed by students, faculty and staff, and feature
a recent campus photo of hundreds of people at the Library Quad.
Inside is information about responsible drinking and alcohol poisoning,
as well as the story of Brad McCue, who died on his 21st birthday
after consuming 24 drinks in less than two hours. They read: “Wishing
you a safe and memorable 21st birthday!”
The University began sending the cards in April, and will continue
sending them in batches at the beginning of each month. Officials
hope to reinforce knowledge of the dangers of irresponsible drinking
as students reach legal age.
“We know some students engage in high-risk drinking on their
21st birthday, and this is our way of reminding them to be responsible
and know some of the risks,” says Heather Dunn Carlton, assistant
director of student activities at CSUS. “Students who have
received it have responded positively. They thought it was a nice
that someone on campus remembered their birthday.”
Even though national surveys show CSUS students are much less likely
to binge drink than their peers at other institutions, the University
has made it a priority to educate students about alcohol abuse.
The new birthday cards are part of that ongoing effort.
Funding for the birthday cards comes from Project Help in Sacramento,
which provided a $2,300 grant.
An example of the new birthday card is with the press release online
at www.csus.edu/news.
For more information, contact the CSUS student activities office
at (916) 278-6595. Additional media assistance is available by contacting
CSUS public affairs at (916) 278-6156.
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