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EDITORIAL: The scope of New Mexico's problem with alcohol abuse is well documented. From the state's drunken driving epidemic to binge-drinking college students who have died of alcohol poisoning, this scourge has caused too much pain and heartache already.
While efforts to increase penalties as a means of deterrence are clearly welcome, it's also useful to focus more on information and awareness as deterrents. Efforts that stress high-risk populations like high school students are especially valuable.
At first glance, a mandatory alcohol awareness class for seniors at Rio Rancho High School might seem a bit much— especially since seniors who don't take the 11/2-hour class won't be allowed to buy tickets for the April 23 senior prom.
This has elicited predictable howls from students who see prom as a right. They note that health classes cover much of the same material.
Rio Rancho's activities director, Amanda Bader, correctly notes that the school is hosting a party and, as such, has an obligation to provide the safest possible environment. At the very least, seniors at Rio Rancho will be more aware of the dangers of drinking— and just in time for the prom. Bader told the Journal that roughly two-thirds of the school's seniors have completed the class.
The brief AlcoholEdu for High School course is available only on the Internet. If school officials intend to stick with the class for next year's prom-goers— as they should— the school will have to make sure that access to computers is not an impediment for any student. Officials might even carve out time during the school day to administer the course.
But at the end of the day, Rio Rancho High School should be commended for this effort. For many students, this might be redundant. But when it comes to getting a handle on a subject that poses some of the most deadly danger, particularly to teenagers predisposed to cutting loose on prom night, a little repetition should be the least of our concerns.
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