Addiction Policy
832:351:01
Beck Hall Room 219
Steven G. Liga, MSW, LSW, LCADC, CPS, CCS
Email: sliga@rci.rutgers.edu
Course Overview
This course is designed to take a critical, yet realistic look at policies related to alcohol,
tobacco, and other drugs. Both regulatory and legislative policies will be discussed on
the local, state, and national levels. Students will explore the process of sound policy
development, learn how to impact public policy on a practical level; and craft policies of
their own.
Required Texts
Multiple articles will be assigned. All will be posted on Sakai.
Course Policies
 Confidentiality—Due to the organization and focus of this course, students may share
their personal experiences. This information is private and should not be repeated outside
of this class.
 Our academic environment is designed for learning, so remember to keep an open mind.
 Every assignment is due on the specified date listed in the syllabus. No late assignments
will be accepted unless approved by the instructor in advance of the deadline. Approved
late assignments will receive an automatic full grade deduction.
 This class depends heavily on student interaction and group learning. Students are
expected to attend class regularly and participate actively. Attendance will be taken.
After two absences (excused or not), each successive missed class will result in 1% being
deducted from your final course grade.
 Students must comply with all university standards on academic conduct (see attached
Statement of Academic Integrity)
 Cell phones must be turned off during class. Please do not subject anyone to disruptive or
rude behavior, such as texting during class.
 Laptops are permitted for taking notes and looking up course-related material. All other
uses (instant messaging, games, surfing, etc.) will result in having to turn off your
computer. Second offenses will result in barring your computer from the classroom.
 Written assignments must cite all sources used and be submitted using 12 point font and
typed SINGLE-spaced.
 All papers must be submitted via sakai by the beginning of class the day they due.
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Calendar
Date
General Topic
Specific Topic
Jan 21
Course Overview
Discussion of syllabus
Jan 23
Define Addiction
Models and Continuum of Addiction
Jan 28
Define Policy
Legislative, Regulatory, and Judicial, plus effectiveness
Last Day to Drop Course
Jan 30
Impacting Policy
Community Need, Stakeholders, Media
Feb 4
Data
School Survey, Hospital ER reporting, Crime
Feb 6
Prevention
Supply vs. Demand
Feb11
Treatment
Modalities, effectiveness
Feb 13
Healthcare Reform
Access, SBIRT, prevention
Feb 18
The Long View
Facts, Trends, Clean Indoor Air
Tobacco
Policy Topic Due
Zero Tolerance
Facts, Trends, Mandatory Minimum Sentencing
Cocaine
Letter to the Editor Due
Harm Reduction
Facts, Trends, Needle Exchange Programs
Feb 20
Feb 25
Heroin
Feb 27
Legalization
Facts, Trends, Legalization - Medical Marijuana
Marijuana
Mar 4
Underage Drinking
Facts, Trends, Mandatory Minimum Drinking Age
Mar 6
Underage Drinking
Private Property Ordinances, Marketing
Mar 11
RX Drugs
Facts, trends, FDA, Marketing
Mar 13
Senator Vitale?
Current Issues in the Legislature
Mar 18
NO CLASS
Spring Break
Mar 20
NO CLASS
Spring Break
Mar 25
School Policy
Rutgers Drug and Alcohol policies
Mar 27
TBD
Students’ Choice
Apr 1
TBD
Students’ Choice
Apr 3
TBD
Students’ Choice
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Apr 8
TBD
Students’ Choice
Apr10
TBD
Students’ Choice
Apr 15
TBD
Students’ Choice
Apr 17
TBD
Students’ Choice
Apr 22
TBD
Students’ Choice
Apr 24
TBD
Students’ Choice
Apr 29
TBD
Students’ Choice
May 1
TBD
Students’ Choice may 5 last day
May 3-9
TBD - Final
Presentations
Students’ Choice
White Paper Due
During exam period 8-14 exams
Course Assignments
1. Public Policy Debate – Pros and Cons of an Important ATOD-related Issue (40%)
You and a partner will identify a current policy related to alcohol, tobacco, or other
drugs. Each pair must sign up for a particular policy to be approved by the professor.
No duplicates will be allowed. This can be a local, state, or national legislative or
regulatory policy. I will provide you with a list of all bills introduced in the New Jersey
legislature during the 2012-2013 session related to the course to get you started. You will
examine the issue from both sides and be able to defend both sides of the argument. This
is crucial when advancing any policy agenda; you must completely understand the
opposite side. The assignment includes two papers and a presentation.
a. (20%) The first assignment is to write a paper about the issue. One partner
will approach the issue as a proponent of the policy. The second person will
approach the issue as an opponent of the policy. In each case, provide the context
for the issue (why is/was it needed?) and significant aspects of the policy (who is
impacted and how?). Each paper will be graded independently.
b. (20%) The second assignment is to lead a debate about the issue in class. The
catch is you must argue from your partner’s perspective (the opposite position
you wrote about). These debates will form the basis for the class discussions
during the second half of the semester, so you must provide me with resources
to post on Sakai for the class to read at least one week prior to your topic
date. Two issues will be examined and debated each class.
You will reserve your topic and debate date during the 5th week of class. Your papers
are due on the class PRIOR to your presentation date!
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2. Letter to the Editor (10%)
Students must write a letter to the editor in support or opposition of a current or proposed
public policy related to alcohol, tobacco, or other drugs. Letters should be no more than
500 words and must be based on facts corroborated by at least two published sources.
Letters that are approved for submission and are actually published before the end of the
semester will receive three extra credit percentage points toward your final grade.
Note that since this is such a brief assignment and is worth a full 10% of your course
grade, it will be graded at a very high standard. Only those recommended for
publication “as is” (well-written and insightful with NO spelling or grammatical errors)
will be awarded an “A”.
This assignment is due February 21.
3. Legislative Event (10%)
Each year, NCADD of Middlesex County, Inc. hosts a Legislative Event on a public
policy related to alcohol, tobacco, or other drugs. It will be held at the Rutgers
Conference Center in the format of a breakfast. It is tentatively scheduled for early April.
To receive credit, students must attend the event and sign in with the instructor. Simple
attendance is worth 5/10 points toward the grade. 5/10 points will be based on a single
page reaction paper to the content of the event (what did you learn, what surprised you,
what disappointed you, etc.). Your paper is due the class following the event. If a
student is unable to attend the event, the optional trip to the statehouse in Trenton may be
substituted for this requirement.
Date to be determined
4. Final (15%) – White Paper: Topic of Your Choice (30%)
You will develop an informative “marketing” tool called a White Paper for an original
ATOD-related policy of your choice not already being covered in class. This is a doublesided single sheet paper providing all the information necessary about a particular policy
to secure the support necessary to get it implemented. This is what you would provide to
the media, legislators, and the public. Therefore, it must be well-researched, clear, and
persuasive, as well as grammatically perfect and visually appealing.
A. Policies result from an identified need. You must look at your community of
choice and identify a need related to an ATOD issue that can be addressed through
policy. Ask yourself:
 What is happening (or not happening) that needs to be addressed by a policy
change or creation?
 What sources document this need?
 What type of policy is needed?
 What is the state of readiness in the community for your policy initiative?
 Who are the primary stakeholders related to the issue?
a. Who will likely be on your side and why?
b. Who will be against you and why?
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c. Who may not lean either way that needs to be convinced?
B. The policy itself must effectively address your identified need. Ask yourself:
 What do I need to do to get my initiative implemented?
 How do I incorporate all aspects of effective policy into this initiative?
 Is it practical, understandable, enforceable?
 What outcomes do I expect?
 How will I know if the policy serves its intended purpose?
 How will I publicize the policy?
5. Class Participation (10%)
As the course design depends heavily on class participation, students will be graded on a
scale of 0 to 5 for their participation. A score of 5 would require a student to clearly
demonstrate that course readings were done, engage in class discussions through
insightful questions, and play an active role in moving the course forward. A score of 1
would mean the professor knows the student’s name. Attendance does not count toward
class participation (see attendance policy). If the professor cannot readily call your name
by the end of the semester, your Class Participation grade will be zero.
Note: It is impossible to get an “A” in this course without ample class participation.
Optional Trip

State House Tour
Beverly Lynch, a veteran Trenton lobbyist for the addiction and health fields will
schedule a group tour of the State House in Trenton. This will be informative and may
include meetings with legislators and their aids and an opportunity to view a voting
session. This tour will be scheduled for a single day and is worth three extra
percentage points toward your final grade, unless a student is substituting this trip for
the Legislative Event assignment (in which case it will be worth 10% of your final grade,
but no extra credit will be available). A single-page reflection paper is required in order
to receive full credit.
Date to be determined
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Grading
Letter % Range
#
Explanation
4.5
4.0
3.5
Letter
Equivalent
100%
95%
90%
A+
A
B+
98-100+%
91-97%
88-90%
B
C+
C
D
F
81-87%
3.0
85%
Good work that meets all requirements
78-80%
70-79%
60-69%
<60%
2.5
2.0
1.0
0
80%
75%
65%
50%
Average work that shows some promise
Average work that meets minimum requirements
Shows limited understanding
Unacceptable
Perfect
Excellent
Very good work
A Word on Grades
I love teaching, and I truly want you to LEARN, because I am passionate about what I have
to offer. I have given strong recommendations to graduate school for students, who I know
have truly learned and earned B's. Doing the work for a grade is a very empty way to go
through school. Unfortunately, this has become the norm. Please do not let yourself fall into
that trap. Learn because it is the learning that is important.
I encourage each of you to “let go” of the grades, because I do not negotiate. I promise to
devote considerable time to reading your work and providing comments to help you learn.
Academic Misconduct: A Bloustein School Perspective
Academic misconduct includes cheating, plagiarism, failure to cite sources,
fabrication and falsification, stealing ideas, and deliberate slanting of research
designs to achieve a pre-conceived result. We talk abut misconduct and ethical
behavior in classes and expectations are set forth in student handbooks and
catalogues. For example, it is presented on pages 545-547 in the New Brunswick
Undergraduate Catalogue for the years 2003 through 2005 and on pages 16-18 of
the Edward J. Bloustein catalogue for the years 2003 through 2005. We are not
repeating that material here. Note, however, that penalties for misconduct can range
from failing an assignment/exam or dismissal from the university.
The Bloustein School is appending this memorandum to your course syllabus
because we recently have detected obvious cases of plagiarism. We have found far
fewer cases of other forms of academic misconduct, but we find several every year.
It is imperative that you understand that unethical academic conduct is intolerable,
and it is completely preventable.
Academic misconduct almost always happens for two reasons. One is ignorance of
academic rules and practices. For example, in virtually every recent plagiarism case
in the School, material has been taken from an Internet site and placed in text
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without appropriate note or attribution. You must learn the proper rules for
attribution. If you are not sure, ask your instructor! If you do not know the rules that
govern the use of data sets, attribution, analysis and reporting of these sets, the
faculty will help you. There is no such thing as a stupid question regarding this
subject.
Pressure is the second common reason for academic misconduct. Students, faculty,
every one of us are subject to deadline, financial, self-worth, peer, and other
pressures. If you are potentially allowing pressure to drive you to misconduct, please
step back and resist that urge. You can cope with pressure in a positive way by
reaching out to friends, counselors, and faculty members. Within the Bloustein
School community, you will find understanding people and positive direction.
The Bloustein School plays an important role in the planning and public policy
agenda. Our work and our students must be above reproach.
Updated
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2/8/05
Steven G. Liga
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