U.S. Department of Education Safe and Drug Free Schools Compliance
Northern Arizona University Biennial Review
2014
Background:
Members of the Alcohol and Other Drug Council in consultation with other important
stakeholders and departmental representatives conducted this review. Participants
included employees from the following departments:
 Student Life
 Residence Life
 NAU Police Department
 Health Sciences Department
 Health Promotion
 Counseling Services
 Greek Life
The group utilized the Part 86 Drug Free Schools and Campus Compliance Checklist for
the review. Melissa Griffin, Health Promotion Manager, prepared the final report.
1. Does the Institution maintain a copy of its drug prevention programs? Yes.
Northern Arizona University offers comprehensive drug and alcohol prevention
programming which spans departments, including but not limited to, those programs
offered through Residence Life, NAU Police Department and Campus Health Services. A
detailed list of those programs can be found in appendix A of this report. The full report
is available to the public on the NAU Health Promotion page (nau.edu/healthpromotion)
and a paper copy can be found in the office of the Executive Director of Campus Health
Services.
2. Does the institution provide annual notification to all employees and students
written materials that adequately describe and contain the following?
Student information about NAU’s safe and drug free school policies can be found
on the Student Life website at
http://nau.edu/Student-Life/StudentHandbook/Appendix-N/
Staff information about NAU’s drug and alcohol policies can be found on the
NAU website at: http://hr.nau.edu/node/10138
Standards of conduct that prohibit unlawful possession, use or distribution of
illicit drugs and alcohol on its property or as a part of its activities?
Students: yes
Staff: yes
A description of the health risks associated with the use of illicit drugs and the
abuse of alcohol.
Students: yes
Staff: yes
A description of applicable legal sanctions under local, state, or federal
law.
Students: yes
Staff: yes
A description of applicable counseling, treatment or rehabilitation programs
Students: yes
Staff: yes
A clear statement of the disciplinary sanctions the institution will impose on
students and employees and a description of those sanctions
Students: yes
Staff: yes
3. Are the above materials distributed to students in one of the following ways?
Mailed to each student (separate from other emails): Yes, electronically
Through campus post office boxes: No
During freshman orientation: yes
During new student orientation: yes
In another manner: The Office of Student Life sends emails each semester to all
NAU students, including extended campuses, regarding the alcohol and drug
policies. Additionally, Residence Life distributes policies on drug and alcohol use
to all on campus housing residents.
4. Does the means of distribution provide adequate assurance that each student
receives the materials annually?
Because the notification is sent to all students via email at least once per year, it is likely
that the large majority of students have received the information.
5. Does the institution’s distribution plan make provisions for providing these
materials to students who enroll at some date after the initial distribution?
The policy is distributed via email every semester to all students. The Office of
Student Life will work to ensure the notifications are sent out after the final day for
students to enroll in order to reach all enrolled students.
6. Are the above materials distributed to staff and faculty in one of the following
ways?
Mailed: Yes, via email at least once annually. Once through the distribution of
the Clery report and again through email communications from the Office of
Public Affairs.
Through campus post office boxes: No
During new employee orientation: Yes. New employees are required to sign a
form confirming receipt of University policies regarding alcohol and drug use.
7. Does the means of distribution provide adequate assurance that each staff and
faculty member receives the materials annually?
Yes. Staff members sign an agreement that they received notification of policies.
8. Does the institution’s distribution plan make provisions for providing those
materials to staff and faculty who are hired after the initial distribution?
Yes. Employees receive this information during employee orientation regardless
of the time of year hired.
9. In what ways does the institution conduct Biennial Reviews of its drug prevention
program to determine effectiveness, implement necessary changes and ensure that
disciplinary sanctions are enforced?
Conduct alcohol & drug use surveys: Yes, Health Promotion
Conduct opinion surveys of students & staff: Yes, Health Promotion &
Counseling Services
Evaluate comments from a suggestion box: Yes, Campus Health Services
Conduct focus groups: No
Conduct intercept interviews: Yes, Health Promotion
Other: The Health Promotion office conducts annual large scale surveys to
assess trends in students’ health behaviors including the use of alcohol, drugs
and tobacco. This information is shared in the Alcohol and Other Drug Council
(AOD) meetings as well as with stakeholders throughout the campus community.
Health Promotion also assesses all large educational events through surveys and
uses intercept interviews to assess impacts of educational media campaigns.
Residence Life evaluates all of its educational programs through program
evaluation surveys. Repeat offenses with the conduct system are very low
which suggests that the conduct system is working effectively.
Assess effectiveness of documented mandatory drug treatment referrals for
students and employees:
Students: Yes. The Healthy Choices class is an alcohol and drug diversion
program provided by Counseling Services. Post-satisfaction and knowledge
assessments are conducted for all participants to measure changes in knowledge
about the risks of alcohol and drug use. My Student Body, an online conduct
course, is used for low level alcohol and drug offenses and includes outcomes
data related to knowledge of alcohol, drugs and satisfaction with the course.
Assess effectiveness of documented cases of disciplinary sanctions imposed on
students and employees
Students: Repeat offenders are tracked and monitored through Student Life and
Residence Life
Other: The NAUPD conducts an annual Campus Safety and Security Report
which is made widely available to the campus and community.
10. Who is responsible for conducting these Biennial Reviews?
The Alcohol and Other Drug Council conducts the Biennial Review for NAU. The
committee is chaired by representatives from Campus Health Services and has
wide representation from other campus departments including Residence Life,
NAU Police, Academics, Greek Life and the Office of Student Life.
11. If requested, has the institution made available to the Secretary and the public, a
copy of each requested item in the drug prevention program and the results of the
Biennial Review?
Yes. If requested, these materials can be made available to the Secretary. An
online version is also readily available to the public at nau.edu/healthpromotion in the
Alcohol section.
12. Where is the Biennial Review documentation located?
Executive Director, Campus Health Services (928) 523-6347
And online at nau.edu/health promotion within the section labeled Alcohol
Appendix A: Comprehensive List of NAU’s Alcohol & Drug Prevention Programs
Departmental Programing:
1. Athletics
 My Student Body is completed by freshman athletes as part of the
freshman academic coursework
2. Counseling Services (CHS)
 Outreach, presentations to classes and groups
 Treatment and Assessment
o Forced referrals are received by Student Life and Residence Life
for alcohol and drug violations. Healthy Choices
psychoeducational groups are utilized as a diversion education
service for those students.
 Education and risk reduction outreach
o Outreach presentations are given by request to campus groups
interested in learning more about the risks of alcohol and drug
use
3. Health Promotion (CHS)
 My Student Body is an online educational program which addresses
alcohol, drug use and sexual violence. Through collaboration with other
campus departments, this program is provided to students. Incoming
freshmen receive a letter from the Dean of Students asking them to
complete the course during the summer before they arrive on campus.
 Social Norms Campaigns are conducted each year to correct
misperceptions about the overestimation of alcohol and drug use on
campus.
 Educational and risk reduction media campaigns educate students on risk
reduction strategies to help keep campus safe.
 S.O.D.A.S. (Students Only Driving Absolutely Sober) is a collaborative
program with local bars and restaurants providing incentives for students
who serve as sober designated drivers.
 The BUZZ alcohol education presentations are delivered as requested to
various student organizations on campus and in Residence Halls.
 Awareness campaigns
o National Collegiate Alcohol Awareness Week, Safe Spring Break,
Standard Drink Challenge
 Shot of Reality is an alcohol education program that targets freshmen
and Greek Life
 National Alcohol Screening Day provides alcohol screening and risk
reduction information to participating students.
 Alcohol & Drug use data sharing with stakeholders
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Flannels and Flapjacks alcohol free alternative event is event specific
prevention and is a collaboration between multiple departments
Backpack articles educate parents about risks of alcohol and drug use in
college and provide resources
Take a Stand! Bystander training empowers students to intervene in
dangerous situations including alcohol poisoning and sexual assault
4. Medical Services (CHS)
 Medical Providers and Nursing staff regularly screen students for highrisk alcohol and drug use and provide risk reduction information or
referrals to treatment.
5. Academics
 Health Science curriculum includes coursework specific to high-risk
behaviors and alcohol/drug use. This information is included in the
following programs:
o Public Health/ Allied health
o Fitness and Wellness courses
o Physical Education Courses
 Student Clubs focused on health education and prevention activities
 Freshman Year Experience, with University College, has incorporated
information about alcohol and drug risk reduction for all freshmen
6. Greek Life
 Greeks Advocating Mature Management of Alcohol (GAMMA) is a
student organization focused on risk management within the Greek
system. They provide programming in the following settings:
o National Collegiate Alcohol Awareness Week, party registration
and monitoring, Safe Spring Break campaign, Greek Leadership
Summit, Greek Week Key note Speakers on hazing and risk
management strategies
o Some of the Greek chapters require completion of alcohol
education programs such as GreekEdu.
7. Residence Life
 Professional staff and Resident Assistant trainings include information on:
o Crisis intervention, emergency response, policy education, peer
mentoring
 Standards of Residence cards are distributed at student check in and
include information about alcohol and drug use on campus
 My Student Body is completed by all Resident Assistants
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o The conduct module of My Student Body is utilized for low level
violations of the alcohol and drug policies within the standards of
residence
Parental notification is provided to parents of students who violate
alcohol and drug policies
Wing/floor meetings occasionally address alcohol and drug use
Passive hall programming includes informational bulletin boards and
electronic notifications about alcohol and drug use
Active hall-based programming/campus-wide programs
Informational cards are available to residents (Jacks Cares Cards) that
outline risks of alcohol use and provide resources
RA/Staff policy enforcement and follow up (on call system)
Regular review of Standards of Residence
Hall Watch program with NAU Police Department
8. Student Life
 Semester notification of policies
 Assist in collecting information for Clery report
 Conduct Process
o Forced referrals, Behavior Risk Assessments, My Student Body,
Parent notification for medical transports involving alcohol/drugs
 Online Student Handbook
 Coordinate town gown relations for lower risk events
 Good Neighbor Coalition
 Monitoring of staff and student tailgating at football games
9. NAU Police Department
 Alcohol and Other Drug (AOD) presentations in residence halls and
classes
 Provide Residence Hall staff training
 Alcohol and drug information provided at summer orientation
 Statistics published in Clery report
 Zero tolerance DUI enforcement
 Increased training for officers on DUI and Drugs
 Participate in ACEA wide DUI task forces
 Receive training and equipment from Governor’s Office of Highway
Safety (GOHS) grants
 Utilize university judicial process for referral and deferrals
 Participate in Good Neighbor Coalition, AOD council, SSTF
 Mutual aid response to AOD issues
10. Recreation Services
 Provide late night hours as an alcohol free alternative
11. SUN Entertainment
 Provide after hours alcohol free concerts and events
Departmental Program Evaluation:
Counseling Services
Current evaluation: CCAPS alcohol scale items & Healthy choices feedback surveys
Recommendations: Track recidivism; evaluate effectiveness of outreach presentations,
30-day follow-up with healthy choices to evaluate changes in behaviors
Residence Life
Current Evaluations: Community assessment reports, RA program evaluations, student
conduct sanction follow-up and verification of completion, staff training evaluations
related to specific sessions and workshops
Recommendations: Evaluate student conduct numbers annually and compare to
previous years, programming impact, My Student Body completion, etc.
Evaluate/track repeat conduct violators related to AOD violations.
Academics
Course assessments related to gains in knowledge of risks associated with alcohol and
drug use. For courses that utilize My Student Body, satisfaction and knowledge is
assessed.
NAU Police Department
DUI: Training new officers, GOHS numbers, enforcement numbers
-Accurate survey
Recommendations: The NAU Police Department will continue to explore different ways
in which they can utilize crime statistics and trends data to better inform their practice.
Student Life
Conduct Process: Track students to verify attendance. Conduct annual re-cap meetings
to discuss good and bad outcomes associated with Homecoming events. Conduct
annual assessment meetings with local bar owners following large drinking events such
as Tequila Sunrise.
Recommendations: Collect additional info/reports on repeat offenders. Survey students
re: educational programs used in sanction process.
Health Promotion
All programs are evaluated for satisfaction and changes in knowledge, attitudes and
behaviors. My Student Body contains evaluation components online. All presentations
are evaluated and saved in a database and used to improve future presentations. Largescale events such as Shot of Reality are evaluated using online data collection systems.
The BUZZ presentation evaluation includes information about intent to reduce drinking.
Intercept interviews assess knowledge of alcohol risk reduction strategies before and
after large media campaigns.
Medical Services
The SBIRT (Screening Brief Intervention and Referral to Treatment) is evaluated through
collection of process data and outcomes data and will eventually include longitudinal
assessment of long term impacts on alcohol and drug use.
Greek Life:
Greeks Advocating Mature Management of Alcohol (GAMMA) track event attendance
for all of their prevention programs. Greek Life is currently working toward creating a
broad tracking system to monitor all alcohol and drug programs provided within chapter
meetings. GAMMA Party Checkers utilize tracking sheets to record any alcohol and drug
violations that occur at registered parties.
Recommendations: Continue to work on effective tracking and evaluation efforts for all
Greek Life educational programs.