Project targets alcohol-related issues on campus and in Westwood community

UCLA students and staff are banding together with members of the Westwood community to address alcohol-related issues such as alcohol poisoning.

The Westside Impact Project is an informal collaboration between Westwood residents and UCLA to address alcohol-related problems on campus and in the surrounding area.

According to a press release published by the WSIP, the project aims to utilize evidence-based strategies to lessen the consequences of alcohol consumption, which include negative impacts on academic performance, diminished capacity to make well-reasoned decisions and alcohol poisoning.

The project is directed by the Institute for Public Strategies and funded by the Los Angeles County Department of Substance Abuse Prevention and Control. Maurina Cintron, a prevention coordinator at the IPS, said the WSIP has evaluated the Westwood area for two years and has found that of nine UC campuses, UCLA ranks fifth for number of disciplinary referrals involving alcohol and drugs.

According to the 2018 Clery Report, which details crime that occurs on university property and in the surrounding area, there were 494 disciplinary referrals for on-campus liquor law violations handed out in 2017.

Cintron said the WSIP is currently taking input about the project from various members of the UCLA and Westwood community and is constantly looking to include new members and suggestions.

“We never say ‘no’ to anyone, and we’re always looking to expand,” Cintron said. “We want to make whatever we do essential and relevant to UCLA students and to the community at large.”

The WSIP plans to introduce media campaigns to promote alcohol-free lifestyles and offer late-night alcohol-free programs sponsored by UCLA. According to the press release, these programs would be offered during the first weeks of fall quarter and would work to change the view that alcohol consumption is expected during college.

Cintron said these events would offer a casual setting where students do not feel pressured or tempted to consume alcohol.

“Our goal would be to take this project and have every department pitch in to have one united, fun program for students to enjoy without worrying about the social pressures of being in an environment where alcohol is served,” Cintron said.

Cintron said the project covers the entire west side of Los Angeles, and originally focused on Venice and Santa Monica before branching out to Westwood and UCLA in 2018.

She said the project first collaborated with the Arthur Ashe Student Health & Wellness Center last year to evaluate alcohol-related issues in the Westwood area before expanding to include other departments and entities inside and outside of the university.

“We’ve gone on to include the police department, Greek life, student groups, community members, business owners and anyone we could possibly think of,” Cintron said. “UCLA is a huge part of the city of Westwood, so it’s only natural to invite staff and students along with community members to weigh in on the project.”

Cintron said the project has been developing strategies to curtail alcohol-related harms that affect UCLA and the surrounding community.

Rena Orenstein, associate director of UCLA Student Health Education & Promotion, said any aspect of alcohol that adversely affects an individual can fall under the project’s umbrella of alcohol-related harm.

“We want to see people being healthy and productive, so any negative outcomes of alcohol use that don’t contribute to that are going to be identified as factors that we want to see lowered,” Orenstein said.

Orenstein said while the university intends to participate in the project mainly to promote the well-being of students, it is also an opportunity to positively impact Westwood residents outside of UCLA.

The project also plans to work with the university police-sponsored Alcohol Diversion and Education Program, which offers students who are cited for alcohol-related violations the chance to attend an educational program in lieu of receiving a ticket or going to court.

UCPD officer Paul Wells said before the Alcohol Diversion and Education Program was implemented, students cited for alcohol-related violations were required to have their driver’s licenses suspended for a year and a misdemeanor charge placed on their criminal records.

Wells said these consequences often had long-lasting ramifications for students.

“For students trying to apply for medical or law schools, the charge acted as an automatic red flag and was a determining factor that they not be accepted a lot of times,” Wells said.

Orenstein said WSIP members are eager to encourage greater student participation and input in the strategizing process as they move forward and develop their programs.

“We all want to see the level of student involvement grow and for them to set the stage in terms of initiating ideas, programs and discussions about needs on campus,” Orenstein said. “The ideas that have been suggested by students thus far have focused on keeping students safe and bringing to life some of the True Bruin Values, and we’d like to see that continued.”