I have been the Chairperson for the Dutchess County College Consortium since September 2003. During that time the following colleges have been involved in our monthly meetings and in assisting with our activities and goals:

Bard College
Culinary Institute of America
Dutchess Community College
Marist College
New Paltz State College
Vassar College

In addition, to hosting monthly meetings, this Chairperson has attended the Marist College Campus Community Coalition which meets once a month to coordinate with other community groups in efforts to discourage underage and binge drinking. The College Consortium had recently decided to on occasion hold it's meeting on the same date as the Coalition, in order to offer other Consortium members an opportunity to become more involved with the Coalition.

In December, The DC College Consortium was successful with the assistance of its members to provide a workshop specifically for tavern owners. The workshops were held at Marist College and they included a discussion with the State Liquor Authority and a TIPS Training for servers. These workshop provided information and training to 32 community members. In addition, funds that were not used for the workshop were used to purchase the ABC LAW handbook. This handbook has been provided to members of the College Consortium, members of the Campus Coalition and other community members that have attended the Coalition meetings.

During our January meeting Ruth DeRosa attended and was helpful with making suggestions and answering questions that we had regard the Statewide Committee and many other areas of interest.

During our February meeting Sarah Dakin attended our meeting and she also offered assistance and made recommendation for our 2004 program.

The College Consortium is presently focusing on planning a workshop or conference for fall 2004. The goal of this workshop would be to continue the mission of
providing relevant information to decrease underage and binge drinking.

Linda Sewell
Chairperson