Mindfulness best celebration policy

December 10, 2007 —

Alcohol-related traffic incidents toward the time of the holidays are a rare occurrence on SVSU's campus, according to Police Chief Ron Trepkowski.

"We don't a notice the influx of holiday type violations like some other communities," he said. "Simply because, you know, this week the students are preparing and getting ready for exams."

Trepkowski said the last alcohol related traffic incident he could recall was in April of 2007. He said that this violation, among any other alcohol related occurrence, was due more so to the warm weather brought on by the spring season as opposed to being part of the aftermath of some end of semester celebration.

Of course, other members of SVSU's community regard the holiday season as a time to practice personal responsibility when dealing with alcohol and transportation. John Kaczynski, a political science professor, commented on the importance of charging a responsible individual with the role of designated driver. He said he had learned about this importance both as an undergraduate at Central Michigan University while a member of a fraternity Phi Kappa Tau and through personal emotional experiences.

During his years as an undergraduate, Kaczynski and his fraternity brothers took turns as designated driver throughout the week. When it was his turn, Kaczynski said he would refrain from imbibing alcohol and visit a nearby coffee shop or stay up late watching movies. He said when he was the designated driver his cellular telephone was always on in case a fraternity brother needed a ride.

"Today fraternities have changed to community service, philanthropy, leadership, and academics," he said. "But the risks are still there. You can't ignore the risks that college age kids will drink. Anybody that tries to deny students from drinking, or deny students from tobacco, it's just not feasible. It's a personal choice."

Kaczynski also commented on the ramifications of drinking and driving, but he was careful not to take the responsibility away from the individual capable of making his or her own choices.

"The second choice you have to make though is once you start consuming that alcohol, the automobile, especially in America, is one of the few ways to get around, transportation- wise," he said. "When you go out to an alcohol establishment you need to ask yourself, are you going to drive, and are you willing to face the consequences of driving drunk?"

Kaczynski said he feels so strongly about the importance of some sort of designated driver system that he would have rather an intoxicated member of PKT or a close friend wake him up with a phone call and ask for a ride as opposed to getting into a car and making a mistake that could harm themselves and others.

According to Kaczynski, regardless of whether individuals are part of student government, a fraternity, or a religious organization, it is a good idea to have a designated driver program of some sort in place, if only for a piece of mind.

"I've had two close friends die in drinking and driving accidents," he said. "One of them was the drunk one, the other one was not. And out of the two incidents, I'm equally pissed off that they're both not here anymore, but I'm more pissed off at the guy who decided to drive instead of calling me."

Drunk driving statistics

.08 is the drunk driving standard (blood alcohol level)

A first time offender convicted of drunk driving faces:

• Up to 93 days in jail
• Up to a $500 fine
• Up to 360 hours of community service
• Up to six points on a driver's license
• Up to 180 days with a suspended license, with a restricted license possible after 30 days

Source: Michigan Secretary of State