When anti-alcohol seminars come to campus, many of the speakers end up preaching the evils of drinking and why it’s wrong. But at Wednesday night’s event, “Maximize Your Buzz,” Collegiate Empowerment creator Tony D’Angelo preached just the opposite.
“I am not here to tell you guys not to drink,” D’Angelo said. “The message behind this program is to get college students to learn how to use alcohol appropriately and safely. Having a buzz is about feeling good and having fun. Alcohol is not about you, it’s about who you are.”
The educational firm Collegiate Empowerment is an organization dedicated to “helping students take higher education higher.” D’Angelo founded the program in 1995 and has dedicated his life to inspiring young adults. He has spoken at over 2,500 universities across the country and has worked with over 1.5 million students.
The program stressed the difference between buzzed and drunk and the benefits of drinking responsibly. Pictures, movie clips and music were all incorporated to give the program a more laid-back approach to college drinking.
Freshman Marissa Allen said she took a lot more out of the event than she anticipated and learned a new approach to drinking.
“I enjoyed the event and I actually thought it was different and entertaining,” Allen said. “I learned how drinking doesn’t just have to be another opportunity to get heavily intoxicated. For me, it’s a reflection of who you are and how you choose to handle yourself when you go out.”
Nick King is a University Activities Organization member and the assistant director of “Maximize Your Buzz” and has been working on the event since the beginning of the semester. He said the small turnout was discouraging, but as long as students took in D’Angelo’s message, that’s all that mattered.
“The turnout was small, but as long as people enjoyed themselves and really listened to Tony’s message, that’s the only thing we were trying to accomplish,” King said.
On March 24 D’Angelo will return to campus for another seminar for College Empowerment. “Rich Grad. Poor Grad” is a financial literacy program designed to help students know more about loans and debt.
“Our mission is to serve students and universities in areas that are important but don’t have the ability to educate or reach students,” D’ Angelo said. “Financial literacy is such an underestimated dialogue and I feel it’s important for young people to understand and grasp this idea of budget spending.”