College Alcohol Risk Assessment Guide: Environmental Approaches to Prevention (CARA)

Despite general agreement among campus officials and students alike that alcohol use contributes to a range of problems confronting colleges and universities, prevention often does not command a high priority for students, faculty, and staff. This guide is designed to help college administrators identify factors within the campus environment that contribute to alcohol-related problems. These factors are examined within the context of the public health approach, which emphasizes how the environment shapes behavior. Methods for identifying problems include scanning, analysis, response, and assessment. The publication also contains scanning and analysis exercises and selected resources. In addition, some analysis and scanning exercises are also provided in an online format, which can be downloaded, distributed, and used electronically.

The publication was updated in 2009 to incorporate recent prevention research.