UW–Madison campus culture

  What do you mean by “changing the culture”? How do you do that?

Consider the example of cigarette smoking: people have smoked for hundreds of years. But smokers have only been “exiled” — made to smoke outdoors, or in designated areas — recently, after nonsmokers became aware of the effects of secondhand smoke and decided to assert their right to breathe clean air. We’d like to take a similar approach to high-risk drinking at UW–Madison: educate people on campus and in the community about the aftershocks of high-risk drinking and help them take a stand against a habit that is unhealthy not only for the campus, but also for the Madison community as a whole.

  How can you change campus culture without changing Wisconsin culture?

To cite a social change cliché, “Think globally, act locally.” We can only change that which is within our scope of influence: the UW–Madison campus and the greater Madison community. Hopefully, our work here will help change Wisconsin culture from the ground up by providing an example for other UW schools and colleges and by establishing a norm in the city that will influence the state as a whole. We’re optimistic that our work can make a difference to Wisconsin. As the Wisconsin Idea declares, “The borders of the University are the borders of the state.”

  Is it safe for my son/daughter to come to college at UW–Madison?

Madison as a community is a low-crime area. It has been touted by Money magazine and other national publications as one of the most desirable places to live in the nation. It is also true that we have a problem with high-risk drinking, as do our other counterpart universities across the country.

The good news is that we have built a strong, active coalition of students, community leaders, citizens and faculty/staff to aggressively work to change the culture and the behaviors to reduce the problem. As with any social dynamic, the more people at the grassroots are actively involved in the change process, the more likely it is that positive outcomes will result. We are seeing encouraging signs that, as a result of this collaborative effort, there is broader public understanding of the essence of a positive college experience with less expectation that it is also one of continuous alcohol consumption.

If your son or daughter comes here to school we will work hard not only to connect them to strong and positive experiences within their new community, but also to engage them in the ongoing work we are doing to reduce the obstacles to their success on this campus.

  Have UW–Madison students always been binge drinkers? How long has binge drinking been part of the UW–Madison culture?

High-risk drinking has been an institution at UW–Madison for decades. However, people are just becoming aware of it as a student health issue, with serious consequences for the community.

  I don’t drink. When I come to school at Madison, will I be under a lot of pressure to start drinking?

It’s up to you whether to drink or not; there is much less peer pressure in college than there was in high school. Students here can go to parties and not drink or find lots of other things to do that don’t involve alcohol. This is a big place with many different places and ways to fit in.

To get involved with the PACE Project, contact us at pace@news.wisc.edu.
The Pace Project is coordinated by University Health Services,
the campus health clinic open to all current UW–Madison students.
Visit UHS at www.uhs.wisc.edu.