The Tempe Community Council has developed a strategic plan to target underage drinking after its research revealed the average child starts drinking at 12.4 years old, a council director said.
Lynette Stonefeld, the director of communities and schools with the Tempe Community Council, said local high schools will host free workshops starting Sept. 9 to educate parents about underage drinking and drug use.
Both parents and students are encouraged to attend the “No Parent Left Behind” workshops, Stonefeld said.
The goal of the plan is not to eliminate underage drinking altogether, but to stop people from becoming involved with alcohol at such a young age, she said.
“We know we’re not going to stop underage drinking,” Stonefeld said. “We don’t have these rose-colored glasses, we know kids are going to drink.”
Journalism sophomore Lenni Rosenblum said she was surprised at the young age that youth are starting to drink.
“Normally I would argue for a nationally lowered drinking age, but drinking that young is unacceptable,” Rosenblum said.
Stonefeld said she never expected the study to reveal what it did, including that most kids who participated in the study were given alcohol by their parents or older siblings.
Stonefeld said many parents think it’s acceptable for their kids to drink while under their supervision, but it can often lead to drinking habits in younger kids.
Rosenblum said her own parents’ views on underage drinking varied. Her father completely disagrees with her drinking at all, but her mother is more relaxed.
“She accepts that I’m away from home, and I’m going to go out and have my fun,” Rosenblum said. “She says ‘Be safe. Have fun. Don’t throw up.’”
Stonefeld said the council began its research a year ago and put together focus groups and an online survey to determine how underage people obtain alcohol, what encourages and discourages them to drink and how they receive information about drinking and drug use.
The 31-page report released by the council outlines four issues that contribute to underage drinking and drug use.
A lack of knowledge among community members, limited prevention education, adults providing alcohol and lack of community focus on good decision-making are cited as causes of underage consumption in the report.
The report also offers solutions, including an increase in community awareness and prevention education opportunities, holding adults accountable for supplying minors with alcohol and launching a community leadership campaign.
Rosenblum called for more action by parents.
“Parents need to take an active role on the secret lives of these kids,” she said. “They need to better inform themselves about their actions and their true whereabouts.”
The study also found that the best way to reach youth is to have someone they can relate to, who has had a problem with alcohol or drugs, come and speak to them personally, Stonefeld said.
Rosenblum said a program at her high school called Every 15 Minutes — which recreated a drunk-driving accident — had a significant impact on her.
“It was very realistic, almost hauntingly so,” she said. “When you have someone coming in to tell you about how their daughter died, and she was only six and will never get to live a full life, it hits closer to home.”
Stonefeld said this issue is especially close to her heart because she lost several members of her own family as a result of alcohol consumption.
“I don’t want to see kids missing out on their entire lives because of alcohol or other drugs,” Stonefeld said.
Reach the reporter at michelle.parks@asu.edu.
