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Editor's note: A digital image of the card is available via e-mail; contact kunews@ku.edu.
LAWRENCE -- Every month more than 300 University of Kansas students celebrate turning 21 years old -- and becoming of legal age to buy alcohol.
To encourage these students to celebrate safely on their birthdays and afterward, the university is sending them birthday cards starting this month. More than 3,000 cards will be mailed over the next year.
The cards display "21 things you should have done at KU by the time you turn 21" and include a bookmark with information about drinking in moderation and a free ticket to a Student Union Activities movie at the Kansas Union.
Cards mailed in March and April also will include an insert inviting the students to complete an online survey after celebrating their birthdays. Participants completing surveys will be entered into a drawing to receive a $100 gift certificate from the KU Bookstores.
KU's Social Norms Media Campaign, funded by the Kansas Health Foundation, is sponsoring the birthday card project. "Some students may be planning to drink as part of their birthday celebration," said Jannette Berkley-Patton, campaign coordinator. "We know the majority of our students drink to some degree and are responsible when they do. While we would prefer for students not to drink, we want them to make safe choices if they choose to."
The birthday card and online survey are based on projects at Michigan State University, California State Polytechnic University-Pomona, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and the University of Virginia.
At Michigan State, the parents of Bradley McCue created the "B.R.A.D. (Be Responsible About Drinking)" birthday card after their son died from alcohol poisoning while celebrating his 21st birthday.
More than 40 universities now send B.R.A.D. cards or something similar to their students.
"We know that the majority of our students keep themselves and their peers safe when they drink," Berkley-Patton said. "We want to affirm their responsible behavior so that a celebration does not turn to tragedy. We hope that the birthday card is a proactive move to reduce harm to our students and their friends."
For more information about the KU Social Norms campaign, see its Web site.
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