Coalitions Try to Keep Youth Safe During Prom and Graduation Season

High school prom and graduation can be two of the most memorable times of a young person's life, but research shows that it can also be among the most deadly, with increased rates of binge drinking, impaired driving and alcohol-related accidents. To make these milestones safer, coalitions across the country have launched efforts to reduce youth access to alcohol and alert parents and other adults to the dangers teens face during these celebrations.

According to Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), nearly half of all 15-20 year olds killed in car crashes during prom season in 2004 involved alcohol. During weekends around prom, 46 percent of traffic crash fatalities among 15-20 year olds were alcohol-related and of these fatalities, 72 percent involved a 15-20 year old driver with alcohol in his/her system.

In addition, a survey by the MetLife Foundation in 2008 found that 60 percent of teens say they feel pressured to use drugs or alcohol “always” or “frequently” at prom or graduation events, and 22 percent of teens surveyed said that they are likely to drink or use drugs at these types of celebrations.

In northeast Illinois, the Coalition for Healthy Communities reached out to a number of partners in the community to reduce access to alcohol on prom night. The group said prom and graduation season is a critical time to step up prevention efforts.

“Prom and graduation season is such a high risk time for young people. Their judgment is not always the best around this time,” said Liz Nelson, a community health specialist with the Coalition for Healthy Communities. “We work with several different partners in the community, including law enforcement, the faith community and local businesses.”

Nelson said one of the challenges they face is that many parents accept the drinking culture around prom and graduation season, because they see it as a “right of passage.” A lot of people in the community feel it’s just a right of passage for teens to drink during prom. They don’t see it as something that should necessarily be stopped,” she explained.

That’s why the coalition sent letters to all hotels in the area asking them to be vigilant of parents who rent rooms for their teens or teens who rent rooms for themselves; and of any parties that might be going on. Because the town has a social host ordinance in place that punishes parents or other adults to host parties for underage youth, the letters carry more weight.

The coalition also sent letters to all of the pastors in the area asking them to talk to their parishoners about the dangers of providing alcohol to underage youth, and the importance of talking to their teens about what they may face on prom or graduation night. Local law enforcement also pitched in, delivering letters to liquor store owners asking them to keep an eye out for adults who may be buying for youth.

The coalition combines these activities with an ongoing social norms marketing campaign in schools that reminds students that the majority of teens in fact don’t drink alcohol or use drugs.

“Doing these types of activities also helps us strengthen our relationships with members of the community and gets our name out there,” Nelson said.

Other coalitions, like Community Connections in Bluefield, W. Va., are doing similar activities. They distributed a small “prom card” to all students who attended prom. On one side, the card had a picture of youth attending prom with the caption: “Make wise decisions on this night so…” and on the other side, the card continued, “you can make it to this day!!!” along with a picture of students tossing their caps on graduation night.

Community Connections also partnered with local florists, asking them to insert the cards in corsage boxes. “While these are simple educational pieces, prevention takes place in steps and education is an important step that cannot be overlooked,” said Wendy Watson, coalition coordinator for Community Connections.

The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism publishes a flyer aimed as helping parents talk to their teens about the dangers of alcohol use during prom and graduation. The flyer is available at:
pubs.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/GraduationFacts/NIAAA_graduation_flyer.pdf.