A University of Iowa proposal to curb illegal drinking may spur faculty and staff at Iowa State to consider the plan.

The University of Iowa Faculty Council is proposing a plan to reduce illegal drinking arrest rates among students and increase awareness of consequences by educating students during recruitment and orientation about the existing bar scene and activities that result from it.

ISU Faculty Senate President Jack Girton said he would make the report available to some individuals in the senate and might bring up a discussion about looking into a similar plan for Iowa State.

“There are a lot of opportunities available to [students]. When they get here, we assume that they are mature enough to make the right decisions, but they also need to be aware of certain consequences,” Girton said.

University of Iowa Faculty Council members said the goal of the plan is to stress to students how background checks by future employers, which reveal arrest records that include drinking violations, could jeopardize job opportunities.

The plan includes working with university officials and the Iowa City Police Department to have minor violations handled internally at the university level, giving the campus more jurisdiction over violations. Currently, the Iowa City Police handles most violations.

University of Iowa Faculty Council member Jeffrey Cox said he believes the University of Iowa has a much larger alcohol problem than Iowa State because of the number of off-campus bars.

According to statistics from Iowa City and Ames police departments, there were 672 more arrests for possession under the legal age in Iowa City than in Ames in 2001. There were 1,976 more arrests in Iowa City in 2002, according to police records.

However, Iowa State reported more liquor law violations in 2002 compared with Iowa. According to Ames and Iowa City departments of public safety, Ames had 384 more liquor law arrests, but 30 fewer disciplinary referrals.

“Our argument here is students are getting arrested at such a dramatically high rate, and this follows them for the rest of their lives,” Cox said.

Cmdr. Jim Robinson of the Ames Police Department said he thinks it would be beneficial if Iowa State set up an education program to inform students about the consequences of breaking the law. He said alcohol violations account for many substance abuse violations within the community. The violations often carry over into assaults, vandalism and other crimes, he said.

“I think any type of program that would prevent folks from becoming intoxicated and breaking the law or becoming a victim would be very beneficial,” Robinson said.

Cox said a study done by the Cedar Rapids Gazette showed 17 percent of last spring’s graduating class from Iowa has an arrest record. It is very common for professional schools and employers to look at a person’s arrest record, he said.

John Mayfield, associate dean of the graduate college, said the graduate college has a section requiring applicants to indicate whether they have a criminal record.

However, he said, having a record does not merit automatic rejection into the college. Arrests do not appear on a student’s academic record.

Mayfield said a person would not be admitted into the college if he or she would pose a threat to security on campus or failed to give further information about his or her records.

If a student lies on the application form about having a record, and it is discovered later, he or she is expelled from the college, he said.

Capt. Rob Bowers of the ISU Police said Iowa State has a number of alcohol violations each year, but the number is typical for a university setting.

He said when ISU Police are called in for an alcohol violation on campus, they usually give the student a citation for the violation and file a report with the Dean of Students office.