Pubdate: Mon, 19 Apr 2010 Source: Record, The (Troy, NY) Copyright: 2010sThe Record Contact: http://www.troyrecord.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1724 Author: Patrick H. Donges SCOPE OF CANNABIS CELEBRATIONS VARY AS CAMPUSES PREPARE FOR '4-20' SARATOGA SPRINGS - What began as four high school students meeting after practice in 1971 to look for a rumored plot of marijuana plants grew into a celebration now ubiquitous among cannabis consumers across the nation as "4-20." At 4:20 p.m. on April 20, college students across the country light up the illicit substance, whether rolled into cigarettes, packed into pipes, or in at least one case, contained within a large, pink, paper-mache octopus. The latter was seen near Skidmore College's Haupt Pond last year as some students smoked in plain sight of faculty and campus safety officials. Outrage over reports of their behavior prompted the school to take action and hold a series of meetings with officials from the Saratoga Springs Police Department, the Saratoga Springs City School District, the Saratoga County Alcohol and Substance Abuse Prevention Council and Saratoga County District Attorney James A. Murphy III. "The meetings have been a good way to recommit our efforts," Murphy said last week. Skidmore, ranked second last year on The Princeton Review's "reefer madness" list, isn't the only campus to garner attention for the illegal spring exhibition. In 2009, the school joined the University of California at Santa Cruz, Bard College, the University of Vermont and the University of Colorado at Boulder in a list of the top five institutions perceived as being the most pot-predominant. There is no specific criterion that addresses public cannabis consumption on April 20, and the "reefer madness" schools have had varying experiences with the event. "That's a rather spurious review," an unidentified Bard College public relations employee said of the ranking. She said she wasn't sure the school had an official stance on the event and referred comment to an official who was unavailable for comment by press time. Bard topped the "reefer madness" list in 2008. "(Institutions) tend to endorse our rankings as very accurate if they view something as a positive," said Seamus Mullarkey, senior editor of Princeton Review's "Best 371 Colleges." "They tend to question the validity if they view something as a negative." Most of the data used for the rankings come from an online survey where participants must register with a valid school e-mail address before submitting answers. The ranking is based on how students answer the survey question, "How widely is marijuana used at your school?" "Student gatherings at the University of Vermont on April 20 have gotten smaller and smaller over the last decade, and in the last several years there has been no activity at all," said Thomas Gustafson, the college's vice president for student and campus life. "We are dubious of the results," he said of their Princeton Review rank. "It's a bunch of people walking around smoking pot and high-fiving each other," said University of Colorado at Boulder media relations director Bronson Hilliard. An alumnus of the school, Hilliard said the reputation of Boulder as a vacation spot, combined with Internet publicity, has turned the display into an occasion dreaded by faculty and students alike. A state university of 30,000 students, the school has seen attendance at their "4-20" display grow from a few hundred participants five years ago to around 10,000 last year. Cameron Naish, a University of Colorado senior and managing editor of the school's student newspaper, said that while he didn't think the event was a hazard, when the clock hits 4:20 p.m., those passing by do experience psychoactive effects due to second-hand smoke. "If I was worried about passing a drug test, it would make me nervous," he said. Hilliard expressed frustration over the lack of media attention two years ago when the school received an award from the White House for being among those schools with outstanding records of community service. "Absolutely," he said when asked if the event negatively affects the reputation of the school. "We've tried a number of different strategies to disperse the crowd, but none of them were effective and some were even counterproductive," he said of measures that included taking photos of the crowd and turning sprinklers on during the event. For the past three years, the university has sent out a campus-wide e-mail notifying students that the display is unsanctioned and unlawful, but must be tolerated to maintain order among the crowd. "Skidmore students are role models, and whether they accept it or not, they need to understand that," Skidmore College's Dean of Student Affairs Rochelle Calhoun said Thursday. On Friday, Calhoun sent an e-mail to students outlining state law, school policy and the consequences students will face if they are caught possessing the drug on April 20. As a new policy measure, tents and other enclosures are prohibited for use that day. "As long as the law of the land in New York state is what it is and our policies are what they are, we need to uphold them," she said. "I don't see a middle ground." District Attorney Murphy said that campus safety officials often call Saratoga Springs police to make arrests, and that substance abuse counseling is mandatory as a condition for the dismissal of a first-time unlawful possession of marijuana violation. "High school students are looking to college students as role models," said Judy Ekman, executive director of the Alcohol and Substance Abuse Prevention Council. She went on to praise those Skidmore students who take the time to volunteer for her organization and other groups with which the school has established records of service by students. "In real terms, at 4:20 in the afternoon, they're in class," she said of the majority of students. "People tend to generalize on the negative and not generalize on the positive." Students can fill out the Princeton Review's 2010 survey at http://survey.review.com. Their book of the "Best 373 Colleges" will be published in July. Skidmore's campus safety non-emergency line can be reached at 580-5567. - --- MAP posted-by: Keith Brilhart