VALDOSTA — The Substance Abuse Task Force met in Powell Hall East Tuesday to discuss the impact of substance abuse issues on the Valdosta State University student population.

Mark Williams, VSU’s coordinator for Alcohol and Other Drug Education, chaired the meeting. The task force is comprised of faculty, administrators, and community personnel, Williams said.

The purpose of the task force is “to address substance abuse issues that affect students on and off campus,” Williams said.

“We want to get the message to students that if they’re going to make alcohol part of their college life, that they do so responsibly,” Williams said.

The task force has recommended several initiatives to help students remain safe while still having fun, he said. One such program is Training for Intervention Procedures, or TIPS. TIPS is a program “designed to give students the skills necessary to intervene in situations where alcohol is being misused,” according to the participant manual.

Jessica Freeman, Remerton’s planning and zoning administrator and liaison to the task force, presented information on the progress being made to moderate alcohol-related problems that city has been experiencing because of the number of VSU students who go there to patronize some of Remerton’s eating and drinking establishments. Freeman also offered to present the TIPS training to VSU students.

Freeman asked Remerton police officer Derrick Sinclair to update the task force on what changes have taken place since the Remerton City Council passed the updated alcohol ordinance around the first of the year. Ever since the new ordinance was passed, mandating an earlier closing time for Remerton’s bars, Sinclair said, “things have been very peaceful.” Sinclair said the number of crimes, like rape and aggravated assault, occurring in Remerton has dropped since the new ordinance was passed.

VSU professor and Lowndes County Board of Commissioners member Richard Lee said that finding solutions to problems concerning drugs and alcohol is “a three-legged stool,” meaning that all three local governing entities need to coordinate efforts to implement uniform regulations affecting the use and abuse of alcohol. Williams said he would like to involve the Remerton Bar Association in future task force meetings to help find ways to continue attracting patrons while adopting measures to improve their safety.

Some other initiatives considered were a server training/licensing procedure like that currently in place in the city of Albany; asking incoming freshmen to complete an education course/survey as part of their initiation into campus life; and partnering with Johnson Distributing or other vendors on programs like offering free, non-alcoholic beverages to designated drivers to encourage responsible behavior among students.

For more information about the Substance Abuse Task Force, call (229) 259-5111.