What is the NCAA CHOICES Grant?

The NCAA CHOICES program provides funding for NCAA member institutions and conferences to integrate athletics into campus-wide efforts to reduce alcohol abuse. NCAA CHOICES projects partner athletics with other campus departments in the development and implementation of effective alcohol-education projects. Johnson State College student-athletes, staff, and faculty collaborated to create the proposal and are now implementing the three year grant, active from Fall 2012-Spring 2015.

 

Badger Leadership: Promoting Healthy CHOICES

The ultimate goal is to educate, support, and empower students to make choices that are healthy, safe, and legal concerning alcohol, and to actively engage student leaders in promoting positive choices to their peers through peer advocacy/mentoring. The programs will not only provide important education to help change the campus culture and perception verse reality on campus, but will galvanize student leaders to give them the tools and empowerment to advocate for change.

 

CHOICES Objectives:

  1. Develop and implement new education and trainings to actively engage students in prevention, advocacy, and mentoring efforts.

     

  2. Educate students about the risks and consequences of alcohol abuse and increase the quantity and visibility of students committed to a legal, healthy, appropriate, and safe lifestyle.

     

  3.  Integrate our Social Norms Campaign and Community Values (purposeful, open, just, disciplined, caring, and celebrative) into campus culture, fostering peer care-taking, promoting healthy lifestyle choices and healthy relationships.

 

CHOICES Highlights:

   
  • Badger Bashes
 Substance Free Tailgates before home contests to promote healthy choices and school spirit
  • Moonlight Volleyball
 Fun volleyball competition sponsored during Alcohol Awareness Week
  • Student Leadership Training Series
 Sessions including Team Building, Communication, Conflict Resolution, Safe Peer Intervention, Student/Leader Balance, and Event Planning
  • APPLE Conference
 Four student-athletes and two athletics administrators traveled to Charlottesville, VA for a three day symposium sponsored by the NCAA to learn about substance abuse prevention and health promotion on college campuses and to create an institution specific action plan.
  • Speaker Series
 Speakers have included: 
  • Bob Hall – Nonviolent Sexuality: Making Peace With Passion
  • Linda Hancock – Campbell’s Soup, Frosted Flakes, and Sex
  • Holly McGrath – Building Your Toolbox for Success
  • ichoose Campaign
 Student driven social norms campaign, dedicated to promoting the healthy choices students on our campus choose to make.
  • Psychology of Peak Performance
 The first three credit course of its kind at JSC. Students learned about the factors that have harmful effects on individuals and campus communities. Students then designed positive prevention models that are being implemented on campus.
  • Community Values
 Integrated our community values to be present in all buildings on campus.
  • Alcohol.edu and Haven Program
 Web based educational programming for students to learn more about healthy choices and healthy relationships.
  • Healthy Relationships Week
 Educate students on how to foster healthy relationships