MCC's Prevention Efforts

MCC is a drug and alcohol free institution including all locations and the residence halls. There are no facilities on campus that serve alcohol. Students, faculty and staff may not consume alcoholic beverages on College property, during classes, or in connection with activities officially sponsored by the College except by permission of the College President.

In addition to the MCC Drug and Alcohol Prevention Policy, Monroe Community College utilizes a comprehensive framework to address alcohol and other drug use by implementing the following strategies: policy, education, prevention, intervention, collaboration, enforcement, and assessment.

MCC Association, Inc., Drug Free Workplace Policy and Code of Conduct Policy

The MCC Association, Inc. is a not-for-profit organization that provides the necessary financial and management support for many student services. These include the MCC bookstores, the child care center, the residence halls, athletics, co-curricular programs and campus food services.

The MCC Association policies are available online but access is restricted to Association employees. In addition, Sodexo, the College’s food service provider distributes the company’s policy to its employees.

• MCC Association Drug Free Workplace Policy and Code of Conduct Policy
• Policies are found in the employee code of conduct handbook which is distributed to all new hires who are required to sign a statement that they read and understand the policies in the handbook.
• All students that attend student orientation receive a student handbook which includes these policies.
• Sodexo Drug Alcohol Use Policy
• Policy, along with all other general work rules, is given twice a year to staff.
• Staff members sign a form confirming that they have read and understand all work rules.

Additional Policy Documents

Housing and Residence Life includes additional statements in their policy documents.

1. From Housing Application/Agreement - All person(s) entering the residence halls are required to present a valid photo ID and may be subject to search of person or property. No weapons, alcohol, drugs, or non-tobacco smoking products or paraphernalia are permitted on the premises for any reason. (Residence Life Manual, p 8)
2. From Residence Hall Policies -Alcohol and Other Drugs - The use, sale, transfer, possession or being in the presence of alcoholic beverages in the residence halls or on college premises is prohibited, regardless of age. No alcohol beverage containers or drinking game devices or paraphernalia are allowed in the residence hall or on the college premises, regardless of age.
   Individuals involved with the illegal possession, use, sale, and transfer or being in the presence of any controlled substances, including those used for medicinal purposes, may be dismissed from the residence halls without refund. All drug paraphernalia is prohibited and will be confiscated. Drug-related violations may result in criminal charges, in addition to residence hall and college student conduct action.
   All students are notified of housing’s alcohol and drug policies when they apply for housing. Students sign a form acknowledging responsibility for College and housing policies during move-in. Each fall semester, the College offers a Housing Orientation weekend where expectations of students are discussed in detail; potential sanctions for violation of the aforementioned policies are also discussed.

Monroe Community College is committed to ensuring that employees and students are informed of its policies and provided with intervention services to assist them in dealing with drug and alcohol issues. As described below, there are a number of policies and programs available to employees and students related to the use of drugs and alcohol and services for students who find themselves in difficult situations. Monroe Community College has an experienced and highly-qualified staff in the Counseling Center and Health Services office who provide information, confidential referrals, and assistance to those persons with problems stemming from use or abuse of drugs or alcohol.

• Each student-athlete is provided with information on MCC’s drug and alcohol policy and signs a code of conduct.
• The information regarding these policies is found on the Athletic Department website.
• The National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Handbook provides rules and regulations that MCC student-athletes must adhere to.
• All violations of the Drug and Alcohol Code of Conduct are reported to the appropriate college officials.

• The office provides confidential counseling to students with drug- and/or alcohol-related problems.
• There is no cost for counseling service to our students.
• Students are provided referral services for professional counseling, treatment, and rehabilitation programs that are available in the local community. The cost for professional services in the community is the responsibility of the student or the student’s insurance carrier.
• MCC’s Counseling Center provides services to students that had an alcohol and/or drug violation in the Residence Halls and transported to a hospital. Upon return to campus, the Counseling staff meet with the student to offer and coordinate supportive services.
• MCC’s Counseling Center collaborates with various community agencies. Such agencies include Villa of Hope for prevention and education and the Evelyn Brandon Health Center for substance use/abuse and mental health referrals.
• The department provides support to the AA meeting held weekly on campus. This meeting is open to the public and offers free parking to all attendees during the meeting.
• Staff from the department were members on MCC’s Heroin-Opioid Task Force in 2017.
• Department hired a Credentialed Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Counselor (CASAC).

The Health Services office completes assessments on at-risk students (including those students requiring ambulance transport following an episode of alcohol/ drug ingestion), to ensure safety, to provide the tools which will better equip students to function in the academic environment, and to prevent the likelihood of further occurrence. The Health Services staff provides individual assessments of the at-risk student’s alcohol and drug use, provides preventive health education, and completes student referrals to community specialists as required.

• Students are referred to Health Services if they have had an alcohol violation in the residence halls or on campus and have been transported to a hospital. Health Services assesses the student’s health wellness to return to regular campus activities.
• Students may also seek information and come to Health Services on their own.
• Students are referred to the Unity Chemical Dependency Program and Dr. Patricia Halligan, a psychiatrist specializing in addiction.

Health Education Programs: programs that address alcohol use/abuse include:

• Consent/Sexual Harassment
• Contraceptives
• Effective Communication
• Finding Balance
• Healthy Relationships
• Seeds of Success
• Self-Care-Coping Strategies
• STDs, STD & Immunization Clinic, STD Prevention, and STD testing
• Staying Healthy during Finals
• Stress 101
• NARCAN training
• Facilitated Opioid Crisis Panel Discussions, proactively responding to the Monroe County Opioid Crisis

Programming in residence halls occurs through collaboration with Health Services, Public Safety, Counseling Services, and external community providers. Additionally, the following two courses are offered:

• Alcohol 101 – a one-hour workshop designed to identify normative data in regards to alcohol use. Students found responsible for an alcohol violation may be referred to this program.
• Housing and Residential Life also provides a series of programs hosted on Thursday evenings as an option to participate in as an alternative to students using alcohol.
• Housing and Residence Life also offers an orientation weekend to all new residential students. Topics covered during the weekend include information on high risk behaviors, including use of alcohol and drugs. During this Orientation weekend, housing staff also collaborates with on campus partners to provide an in depth review of housing policies and expectations.

• The MCC Association Wellness Committee sponsors numerous wellness initiatives that promote healthy lifestyles.
• The MCC Association partners with the College’s Health Care Provider to provide education on nicotine addiction and referral to smoking cessation resources.
• The MCC Association distributes a monthly newsletter “Work Well Live Well Healthy Roads” to all employees which provides healthy lifestyle information on numerous topics to include alcohol and drug information.
• MCC Association employees are educated during the annual Benefits Open Enrollment about the services available through the Employee Assistance Program.
• Sodexo, the College’s Campus Food Services provider, provides training to all of their supervisors and managers on how to handle drug and alcohol use in the workplace. The company policy is reviewed with employees during mandatory employee meetings and they educate employees on the programs that exist through their Employee Assistance Program if the employee chooses to seek help.

• Title IX Training and Prevention Program – The College has hired an Assistant to the President, Title IX and Inclusion, who is responsible for student and staff training on Title IX and sexual violence issues, including the role that drug and alcohol use plays in these problems.

• The Vice President, Administrative Services - who is a member of the President's Leadership Team - supervises the Executive Director for Human Resources.  Human Resources offers and extensive Employee Assistance Program (EAP) that provides in person, online and telephone counseling to employees regarding personal issues that may lead to substance abuse.  The purpose of the counseling is to provide employees with developing coping skills or accessing assistance to deal with these issues in a positive and constructive manner.
• Department managers and supervisors are trained and counseled in reasonable suspicion drug and alcohol testing in an effort to ensure that the College maintains a safe working and learning environment.  The College's Public Safety department is able to provide support in situations where there are concerns about a staff member's well-being and use of drugs and alcohol on the job.
• The MCC Wellness Council was established in 2008 to foster community engagement and promote employee health through education.  The college community encourages employees to integrate wellness activities and philosophy into their work and life experiences. The emphasis is providing employees opportunities to take responsibility for their own health.  Programs are offered on physical, emotional, occupational, intellectual, and financial health.  This includes education on MCC’s Employee Assistance Program that provides counseling for personal issues including substance abuse.    

Monroe Community College’s Department of Public Safety routinely gives presentations on campus and within the Residence Halls, which include college alcohol and drug policies and their enforcement. Programs also include the risks to personal safety that one faces when consuming drugs and alcohol. Informational sessions on the following have been presented:

• DWI impact panel, Housing & Residence Life sanction program
• DWI Awareness Program, with Peer Mentors
• Distracted Driving Program, (Alcohol and Drugs), in residence halls
• IT/Library staff joint employee training session on Substance Use/Abuse Recognition training
• Conducted NARCAN training for Public Safety staff. Individual staff is approved to conduct NARCAN training

• The Behavior Early Alert Team (BEAT) at Monroe Community College is a campus intervention team that uses a formalized approach to addressing mental health disturbances and other behavior that either poses a danger of harm to self or others, or disrupts the learning environment.
• "Be A Healthy Hero Summer Camp" learning experience for students from Rochester city schools included sessions on drug and alcohol avoidance
• Office of Student Life and Leadership Development Alcohol Agreement. In adhering to the Code of Conduct, purchase or consumption of alcohol is not permitted on trips. Students traveling as part of a club or organization are required to reach and sign this document as part of the pre-trip planning process.

• Upholds the policies set forth within the Student Code of Conduct.
• Promotes safe and healthy lifestyles through small scale programs and tabling. Maintains partnerships with Counseling, Title IX, Athletics, Housing and Residence Life, and academic departments to address student behavior issues.

Various departments across the college have collaborated with internal and external agencies on educational and preventative programming surrounding the current opioid crisis.

• Panel Discussions
• NARCAN training available to all staff
• Public Safety completes annual NARCAN training
• Student Nurses and Phi Theta Kappa clubs lead NARCAN training
• Creation of the MCC Resource Committee Recovery/Substance Abuse sub-committee

Various departments across the college have partnered with the following organizations or coalitions which specifically address alcohol and other drug issues:

• American Cancer Society
• Greater Rochester Health Foundation
• Mental Health Association of Rochester/Monroe County
• New York Division of Substance Abuse Services
• New York State College Tobacco-Free Initiative
• Unity Chemical Dependency Program, Dr. Patricia Halligan, a psychiatrist specializing in addiction.
• The Counseling Center collaborates with the Evelyn Brandon Health Center for substance use/abuse and mental health treatment.
• Veterans Outreach Center, Inc.

The Health Services office, in particular has collaborated with Alcohol and Substance Abuse Dependency in Rochester, New York, to offer the connections to the following resources to students, faculty, and staff:

• Alcoholics Anonymous meetings on campus
• Al-Anon and Alateen
• Genesee Alcohol Treatment Center
• Huther-Doyle
• National Council on Alcoholism
• OASAS Addiction Treatment Center
• Park Ridge Chemical Dependency
• Strong Behavioral Health
• Unity Chemical Dependency
• Unity Health
• Westfall Associates

Many academic areas address alcohol and other drugs through policies in the classrooms, curriculum infusion, and research. An overview of the programs and classes offered during the 2018-2019 and 2019-2020 academic years is listed below.

Monroe Community College has an A.S. Degree and Certificate Program in Addictions Counseling, which deals with both alcohol and drug addiction issues. The core courses in these programs include:

• ACD 140 - Alcoholism/Chemical Dependency and the Human Service Worker
• ACD 142 - Alcoholism/Chemical Dependency and the Family
• ACD 143 - Alcoholism/Chemical Dependency Counseling Skills
• ACD 144 - Alcoholism/Chemical Dependency/Substance Abuse Group Counseling Skills
• ACD 241 - Alcoholism/Chemical Dependency Treatment Modalities
• ACD 245 - Special Topics in the Field of Alcoholism/Chemical Dependency/Substance Abuse
• ACD 246 - Alcohol/Chemical Dependency Internship and Seminar
• ACD 290 - Independent Study

The Hospitality Management Program offers a course that addresses the legal aspects of alcohol sales:

• HSP 211 – Hospitality Law

The Police: Law Enforcement courses include:

• PLE 131: Breath Analysis Operator

The Physical Education Department offers health and wellness classes, including:

• HED 209: Drugs and Behavior

The Nursing Program has Student-Related Policies that include professional standards of conduct addressing chemical substance dependency.

Monroe Community College’s Public Safety Training Facility conducts a police academy which is attended by MCC Public Safety Peace Officers. The curriculum includes blocks of instruction on how to recognize and deal with intoxicated persons. The training objectives include the following:

• Officers gain the ability to discern the difference between intoxicated and incapacitated persons
• Officers learn the procedures to follow to make referrals for alcohol and drug treatment

According to the Annual Campus Security & Fire Safety Report the referrals for alcohol on campus on the Brighton Campus, are below:

• 2017 – 61 referrals
• 2018 - 47 referrals
• 2019 - 24 referrals

The amount of alcohol referrals has decreased in the last three years. This can be contributed to a more robust Student Code of Conduct, additional programming in the residence halls, and a general shift in the culture at the institution.

The five primary venues on campus that enforce policies and laws regarding alcohol and other drug use are the Office of Human Resources, Public Safety office, Housing and Residence Life, Student Rights and Responsibilities, and Student Services. Consistent enforcement sanctions apply to all students and employees. All documented sanctions are housed within the Maxient Student Conduct Database for reference and comparison. Average range of sanctions include but are not limited to disciplinary probation, mandatory attendance at educational programs offered by various college departments, loss of privileges (including housing), and community service.