Student Life at Mount Allison University

Students are responsible for their own decisions about whether to use alcohol or not and when to use or not. Mount Allison University does not condone underage drinking. Students who choose to use alcohol are responsible for knowing, understanding, and complying with applicable University and residence policies and provincial laws related to alcohol.

1. The Liquor Control Act of New Brunswick. Possession or consumption of alcoholic beverages by, or distribution of alcoholic beverages to, individuals under the legal drinking age is a violation of provincial law. The legal drinking age in New Brunswick is nineteen. Students are responsible for knowing, understanding, and complying with applicable Provincial Laws and University Policies regarding alcohol.

2. University Policy as circulated by the University Liquor Policy Committee. Copies of the University's Policy are available from Residence Dons, Student Life and from the SAC.

1) The effect of alcohol on our bodies and, therefore, our behaviour. Alcohol changes the chemistry of the brain. The effects are physical and psychological, resulting in altered feelings, perceptions and capacities. Alcohol can produce dependence which is synonymous with addiction.

2) Factors which affect the rate of absorption and, therefore, inebriation. To affect the brain, alcohol must cross the cell membranes of the small intestine and be absorbed into the bloodstream. Drinking less and drinking slowly, alternating alcohol and non-alcohol drinks and having food in the stomach help us control our level of inebriation. Milk or juice-based drinks are absorbed more slowly than carbonated drinks.

3) What overindulgence is and how to avoid it. Overindulgence is dangerous. If you drink to the point of vomiting, "blacking out", falling down, passing out, losing coordination, and doing things you would not do if sober, you have consumed a dangerous amount of alcohol.

4) How to recognize problematic drinking. Problematic drinking exists when a pattern of alcohol consumption results in negative consequences (e.g. physical (injuries, addiction), social, legal, academic, financial, alcohol withdrawal symptoms,) and continues despite such consequences.

5)How to be a moderate not a heavy drinker. Moderate drinking means not exceeding the following guidelines: drinking alcohol three or fewer times a week, drinking two drinks or fewer per hour, and ending alcohol consumption one to two hours before sleeping.

6) Alcohol is a depressant. We should avoid or reduce alcohol use when sad, depressed, on medication or on other drugs, when we need to be alert, and to escape stress or problems. "Liquid depression" will only make situations such as these worse. Alcohol depresses inhibitions at the time of inebriation, and the depressant effect remains in the system after the inebriation effect has passed.

7) Alcohol is addicting. Addiction is defined as "the emotional, mental or physical drive to continue using a substance because the user feels that its effects are necessary to maintain a sense of well-being". Alcohol is capable of producing both psychological and physical addiction. In other words, to an addict, not drinking causes distress.

you can "party" without alcohol and have fun.
be encouraging and supportive to anyone who doesn't drink or is cutting down or giving up drinking
the legal drinking age in New Brunswick is 19 years
it is against the law to drive in New Brunswick if one's Legal Blood Alcohol Content (BAC) is .08 or above. The police can suspend a driver's license for up to 24 hours for a BAC reading between 005 and .08.
one beer is equivalent to 1.5 oz. liquor is equivalent to 5 oz. wine
a cold shower or drinking coffee does not reduce drunkenness: only time can do this
if you are worried about your own or someone else's drinking you may consult confidentially with a Personal Counsellor at Mount Allison (364-2255) or Regional Addiction Services at the Sackville Hospital (364-4100)
choose your drinking partners sensibly. Avoid drinking with people who want to see you get drunk
be aware that, while, relatively speaking, Mount Allison has very few disciplinary problems with students, the vast majority of the incidents that do occur on campus are alcohol related.

The following policy for the possession and consumption of alcohol in residence applies to all residents of University residences and their guests.

Rooms
Risk Assessemnt forms are not required for consumption of alcohol by students in their own rooms.

Lounges
Floor or lounge party permits are not required for the consumption of alcohol in student lounges as long as the following conditions are respected and the Don of the individual residence agrees.

1) Only one drink per person and thus one container, which must be made of plastic or other non-breakable substances is permitted in the lounge at one time. Opened cases and bottles must remain in students' rooms.

2) Only containers which hold twenty (20) ounces or fewer are permitted.

3) The number of people in the lounge at any one time may not exceed reasonable numbers as determined by the residence Don.

4) Drinking games are not permitted;

5) Residents and their guests must comply with House By-Laws.

All residence parties must be preplanned in consultation with the floor Resident Assistant.
Written permission for the event must be obtained at least seven days in advance from the Residence Don and Dean of Students.
Authorization must be obtained at least seven days in advance from Student Life.
Admission to the event must be controlled. For floor parties, only the number of floor residents of that floor plus one guest each will be permitted. For lounge parties, the number of people permitted at each location is specified in the University's Liquor license and is listed in the Residence Staff Manual.
The Dons agree to: 1) be present in the House; 2) ensure that at least one Resident Assistant acknowledges responsibility for the party and is in attendance for the duration of the party; 3) ensure that admission to the event is controlled; 4) ensure adequate clean-up; and 5) ensure that the event is closed down if necessary.
The residence Don is responsible for ensuring that fire and safety regulations are upheld.
Normally residence parties are permitted on Friday and Saturday evenings after 7 pm. Occasionally permits are granted at other times. For permits granted on Saturday afternoons, the starting time will be no earlier than 12:30 pm. A closing time for each event must be set in accordance with House By-laws governing quiet hours.
It will be the responsibility of the floor residents to clean up the area used after the party.

Sufficient quantities of non-alcoholic beverages must be provided by the organizers of any residence party based on the number of participants expected.
Because House parties are private parties for residents and their guests, it is acceptable for Houses to purchase alcohol on behalf of the residents as a way of having residents share the cost of the alcohol just as housemates might split the cost of beverages at an off-campus party. It is not acceptable for Houses to sell alcohol at a profit nor is it acceptable for Houses to admit individuals who are not guests of Mount Allison residence students.
It is a violation of provincial law to serve a person who is underage. In the event that an underage student is found to have consumed or to be intoxicated, the person who serves the alcohol may be held accountable by the courts for a violation of the Liquor Policy Act.
At any floor or lounge party at which a bar is set up, the servers must not have consumed alcohol in the previous 18 hours and the Don must meet with all the servers prior to the event to clarify expectations.
No more than one 12 oz beer, 1 oz of liquor or 5 oz of wine may be served to each patron on each visit to the bar.
Persons who may have reached the point of intoxication (including but not limited to patrons displaying slurred speech, difficulty standing or walking, inappropriate behaviour, diminished physical coordination, or recent history of having purchased and/or consumed excessive amounts of alcohol according to the judgment of the server(s)), and individuals whose behaviour violates University policy or reasonable standards of public conduct, will be refused service at the bar. Providing an alcoholic beverage to an obviously impaired or an underage person is prohibited.
If tickets for a House event are to be sold as a means of having residents and their guests share in the expenses, they must not entitle a purchaser to more than two drinks per hour. The seller of any ticket must submit to the party organizer, in advance, a) the name of the purchaser; b) if the ticket is purchased by a non-student or by a non-residence student, the name of the residence student who will accompany him or her to the party and be responsible for him or her and for his or her guest if any; and c) if the ticket is purchased for a non-student or for a non-residence student the name of the person for whom the ticket was purchased. In case c) the purchaser will be responsible for the person for whom the ticket was purchased. In some cases, all three of a), b) and c) will apply so that the information required would include the name of the purchaser, the name of the residence student who will accompany and be responsible for the purchaser and his or her guest, and the name of the guest."
*For common area parties, other than those confined to only one floor, for which there are no advance tickets, non students and non-residence students must be signed in at the door by a residence student who agrees to be responsible for them."

Advertising
The only forms of advertising of residence parties that are permissible are: advertising within the House in which the party is to be held, visible only inside the House, distribution of tickets via Residence Council; and invitations individually addressed and delivered in person, by campus mail or by individually addressed e-mail.

Drinking to the point of passing out is unacceptable.
The health and safety of members of the Residence Community is of primary concern. The University recognizes that on occasion a student may make a mistake and consume too much alcohol. When a student does that, the residence staff may speak to the student following the incident with a view to educating the student. In the interest of safety, all students are expected to inform a residence staff member as soon as it becomes apparent that a fellow student has consumed too much alcohol. Residence staff members are expected to inform their Don(s).
Repeated cases of a student drinking excessively may result in a referral to the appropriate treatment service or facility or a recommendation to the University Judicial Committee that a student be dismissed from residence.
As members of a community, residents are encouraged to assist an impaired individual in procuring the assistance of the Residence Don, Campus Security, local police and/or medical professionals.
Abusive consumption of alcoholic beverages will not excuse conduct that violates University or residence regulations. In such instances, appropriate penalties for violations will be applied, and referral for personal assistance may be made.
Activities that glorify abusive use of alcohol are strongly discouraged.

Outside Residence

The possession of open containers of alcoholic beverages, and the consumption of alcoholic beverages, are prohibited on the grounds or in other buildings of the University outside residences except according to the specific conditions of licenses of the Tantramarsh Club, the University Club and licensed events such as JP and the Winter Carnival semi-formal.
Alcohol offenders outside residence are subject to a charge before the University Judicial Committee and consequences described in the document Policies and Procedures for Student Governance.
Remember that when a fire alarm goes off at a party, residents are expected to leave drinks inside the building

Additional copies of this policy and copies of the complete document Mount Allison Liquor Policy are available from Student Life. Any questions regarding the Policy should be addressed to the Residence Don or the Dean of Students.