There is a point where drinking alcohol becomes a problem. There is a point where the amount of alcohol or the way you are consuming it is no longer responsible. And it’s quite clear, that we are at the point where the culture of alcohol at Iowa State is a problem.

Data shows that the number of students at Iowa State who drink alcohol is going down, but those who do drink are drinking in excess or binge drinking more frequently. Habits of alcoholism can and do start in the Iowa State community.

The excessive drinking has a toll on more than just the individual.

In 2016, nearly 40 percent of the cases Iowa State Police handled were related to alcohol. And if the first two home football games were a precedent for 2017, this year looks to be worse.

“When you’re drinking to the point where we have to call an ambulance, it’s a drain on everybody’s resources, the police, fire, Mary Greeley, we just don’t have enough resources for all the poor behavior that we saw,” Commander Geoff Huff, of Ames Police, told the Daily after the football game against the University of Northern Iowa. “It’s kind of frustrating for us because people just don’t know how to moderate a little bit.”

And while Iowa State is not necessarily unique, as alcohol affects many college campuses, it is important to recognize that there are a lot of ways to improve here. Some of these improvements can come at the university level or even state level, but many of them must come from individual students and student groups.

At the university level, we hope that more effort can be put toward discussions about substance abuse. When there are people who truly believe that you can’t be an alcoholic until you graduate, we have a problem. While there are campaigns, such as Iowa State Police’s “Be a fan in the stands, not a pain in the grass“ that promote responsible drinking as well as a one-time AlcoholEdu class, there should be more effort put toward educating students about the true and long-term effects of substance abuse.

At the state level, we hope that our representatives will again consider putting the medical amnesty bill — that was put together by Student Government leaders — into law. The bill is meant to “provide immunity from certain criminal offenses and prohibiting certain disciplinary sanctions for persons who report, seek or require emergency assistance for alcohol overdoses.”

Last, students need to take responsibility for this culture shift. It simply isn’t “cool” or “lit” to drink to the point where it puts anyone’s safety at risk. If you are going to drink, do so responsibly and be aware that alcoholism is very real on our campus. Let’s put a stop to it.