In an effort to bring underage drinking into the spotlight, Oxford's Coalition for a Healthy Community will be holding a meeting to evaluate concerns over the dangers of underage drinking.
The meeting will be held at 7 p.m. April 1 at Talawanda High School.
The 2008 Underage Drinking Prevention Town Hall meeting will be the coalition's third year participating in the event, which asks participants to hold the town hall meetings during the months of March and April.
Dan Urra is the administrator of the Coalition for a Healthy Community as well as the. Urra said the event is intended to be an open discussion about underage drinking concerns and is geared toward Miami University students, Talawanda High School students and parents.
"The goal of the meeting is to examine and look at the role of the enforcement of underage drinking laws and how this plays into the health and wellbeing of students in the Oxford Area," Urra said.
Laura Esch, assistant to Miami's director of health education, is helping Urra organize the event for the community. Esch said there will be small group discussions between various members of the Oxford community. Esch said parents, college students, high school students, school officials, local business owners, police officers from both the Miami University Police Department and the Oxford Police Department, and a visiting attorney will focus on the enforcement of underage drinking laws. The forum will discuss the possible consequense of underage drinking not only by those individuals who drink but also students who are affected by drinking illegally.
Esch said 43 other town hall meetings are being held across the state of Ohio during the months of March and April to prepare for prom and graduation season, in addition to 1,000 meetings being held nationally to focus on the topic.
Esch said that Student Health Services and the coalition are an important alliance in Oxford because of their similar aims.
"We are both working toward the same goals of legal and low-risk drinking in the area," Esch said. "Every time you get students and community members together to talk, it's a really unique experience."
Esch said the meeting is held using resources given to the coalition by a federal grant that includes materials to inform the public regarding current underage drinking laws and their possible enforcement.
Urra said the meeting will include instruction and literature from the state awareness program "Parents Who Host Lose the Most," which alerts parents of the legal implications of their underage children throwing parties at their residence.
Urra said whether a parent is aware of the party or not, under the Ohio Revised Code, the parents could be held legally responsible for the party's consequences. Urra said that even students may be charged under these laws if they host parties at a residence where underage drinking occurs.
He said that since the parental awareness program started, there has been a 23 percent reduction in students reporting parties that were held by families and friends in the county.
