BISMARCK, N.D. - The North Dakota Higher Education Consortium for Substance Abuse Prevention has been awarded a $371,791 grant from the U.S. Department of Education.

Awarded through the University of North Dakota, the grant begins Oct. 1, 2009, and runs through Sept. 30, 2011, and will be used to implement Project North Dakota Partners in Prevention. At least two staff members at each campus will be trained on brief intervention strategies for at-risk students. The initiative will provide online alcohol education for first-year students. The funding also will allow the consortium to provide students attractive options for alcohol-free, late-night activities. This project is expected to reduce binge drinking among underage students on North Dakota campuses and in the surrounding communities.

The alcohol consortium was established by the State Board of Higher Education in 2003 in response to North Dakota's number one national ranking in the incidence of youth and young adult binge drinking. It works to prevent alcohol and drug abuse in the home communities of the 11 NDUS institutions and Jamestown College in Jamestown, N.D.

"The State Board of Higher Education is deeply concerned about the impact of substance abuse on students' academic and personal success," said Bill Goetz, chancellor of the North Dakota University System. "Through the efforts of the consortium, each campus now has additional resources to broaden its outreach to students and to help curtail the negative impact of alcohol and other drugs on their lives."