This document summarizes the work of the Circles of San Antonio Community Coalition in reducing underage drinking. It discusses the coalition's formation in 1998, funding sources, target areas and populations. Key strategies discussed include social host ordinances, alcohol outlet density reduction, and increasing alcohol taxes. The coalition brings together various sectors to develop and implement strategies with community-wide impact.

2. Vickie B. Adams
Coalition
Director
Boyd Baxter
Coalition
Coordinator
Rudy Lopez
Coalition
Coordinator

3.  Formed in 1998
 Serves Bexar County
 Underage Drinking Forums
 Partnership with DEA on Drug Take Backs
 Fiesta Commission
◦ Reduced beer serving size
◦ Festival seller server training
 BCDWI Task Force and District Attorney
◦ Increased DWI Enforcement
◦ No refusal 24-7 policy

4. Community Coalition
Partnerships (CCP)
Drug Free
Communities (DFC)
Partnership for
Success (PFS)
Funding
Source
Texas-Department of
State Health Services
(DSHS)
Federal- Office of
National Drug Control
Policy (ONDCP)
Texas- Health and
Human Services
Commission (HHSC)
Staff Boyd Baxter Rudy Lopez To Be Hired
Target
Population
18-25 in colleges
and universities
12-17 youth 12-20 underage
drinking
12-25 RX misuse
Target
Area
Bexar County Zip Codes in the
SAISD Boundaries
Areas around
Universities
Strategies Underage Drinking-
Reducing Access
Social Host
Ordinance
Increase Alcohol Tax
Underage Drinking-
Increase
Enforcement
Synthetic Drugs
Retailer Education
Underage
Drinking-
Reducing Access
Alcohol Outlet
Density
Retailer Education

5. A coalition is a vehicle for bringing
together various community and
government sectors to develop
and carry out strategies that have
an impact on the whole
community.
Refer to the Coalition MOU “Wheel”

7.  Noise
 Nuisance
 Vandalism
 Student Safety
 Health Care Costs/ Burden
 Law Enforcement costs/ police calls for service
 Violence
 Drinking-Driving

8. Parties are high risk
settings for binge
drinking and
consequences
Alcohol provided free or at
low cost per drink
Often unsupervised;
sometimes with
parental/adult permission
Increased risk for DUI,
riding with drunk
driver, sexual assault,
violence,
injuries, vandalism

9.  UTSA Police Sergeant Geoffrey Merritt said, “The key to keeping
crime rates down is stopping underage drinking.” Quote from 2013

11. A tweet sent out by someone believed to be an organizer says "We hired
an off duty cop, he doesn't care about smoking and drinking, all he
cares about is keeping tonight with 0 fights. Let's party.“
(source; http://www.foxsanantonio.com/news/features/top-stories/stories/edgewood-isd-
officer-investigated-underage-drinking-party-4587.shtml#.U6scUk1OWM9

12. Substance use has an insidious
way of interfering with a
student’s ability to take
advantage of all that college has
to offer. Interventions to reduce
rates of substance use should
be part of any college’s plan to
improve student retention.

14. Student
 Family history
 Personality
 Mental Health
 Distorted expectations of
consequences
Community
 Enforcement of Laws
 Alcohol Availability
 Alcohol Pricing
 Alcohol Promotion
Parent
 Expectations
 Vigilance
 Modeling
 Disapproval
Campus
 Norms
 Policy Enforcement
 Availability of resources
 Screening and
intervention services

15. 1. Providing Information
2. Enhancing Skills
3. Providing Support
4. Enhancing Access/Reducing
5. Changing Consequences
6. Physical Design
7. Modifying/Changing Policies

17. Cleaning
our
streams
of
substance
abuse Vickie Adams
Circles of San Antonio

18. FOCUS: Individual
Behavior
GOAL: eliminate
personal alcohol use
TOOLS: education and
developing refusal
skills
WHO: Parent, teacher
and child
FOCUS: policy, laws,
attitudes, behaviors
GOAL: community
control
TOOLS: media and
policy advocacy, social
pressure, enforcing laws
WHO:
shared/community
power
TST, 2014

19. Age Started
Drinking (year)
Alcohol
Dependence (%)
<14 47
14 45
15 38
16 32
17 28
18 15
19 17
20 11
>21 9
Data from National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions as presented
in Hingson, Heeren, & Winter, 2006, Age at Drinking Onset and Alcohol Dependence.

20. Informed choice
•Research
indicates it
•Education does
not make much
difference
Dr. Sally Caswell

21. Environmental Approach
Environmental Strategies
incorporate prevention efforts
aimed at changing or influencing
community conditions, standards,
institutions, structures, systems and
policies.

23. •Social Host Ordinances
Availability
•Controlled Party Dispersal
Enforcement
•Increasing Alcohol Excise Taxes
Price

24. http://www.collegedrinkingprevention.gov/CollegeAIM/Re
sources/NIAAA_College_Matrix_Booklet.pdf

25. Among College Students, a
10% increase in the price of
beer is associated with the
following:
8.9% decrease in the number
of drinks
4.8% decrease in the
probability of getting in
trouble with the police
3.6% decrease in the
probability of taking
advantage of another person
sexually or being taken
advantage of sexually
Source: Grossman, M. & S. Markowitz, “Alcohol Regulation & Violence on College
Campuses,” 2001

27. Act as a
Community
Lifeguard
Report underage
drinking parties to
law enforcement
Work to Reduce
Access to Alcohol in
Your Community
Be a
Spokesperson
Educate the public on
the costs and
dangers of underage
drinking
Advocate for Social
Host Accountability
Join the COSA
Coalition
Help build
community
awareness
Learn about other
strategies that are
effective at reducing
underage drinking

28. Circles of San Antonio Community Coalition
San Antonio Council on Alcohol and Drug Abuse
South Texas Centre, AT&T Building
7500 US Hwy 90 West, Suite 100
San Antonio, Texas 78227
(210) 225-4741 coalition@sacada.org
www.facebook.com/circlesofsa
www.twitter.com/circlesofsa
Next meeting is January 13th 3-5pm at SACADA