Community Responsibilities: Substance Policy
Malone recognizes the danger to one's physical and/or psychological well-being from the use of certain products and substances. Malone vigorously discourages the use of (and prohibits the unlawful use of) tobacco, alcoholic beverages, (including non-alcoholic beer), hallucinogenic drugs (including but not limited to marijuana), or narcotics or other controlled substances (not properly prescribed and used). Malone prohibits the possession, use, distribution, purchase, or sale (or solicitation of purchase or sale) of illegal or unauthorized drugs, controlled substances, drug related paraphernalia or alcohol, or being under the influence of any such substance while on Malone property, while conducting Malone business, while engaged in Malone-related activities or while operating or riding in any Malone-supplied vehicle. For further details please refer to the “Malone Substance Use and Abuse Policy for Employees and Students” brochure.
A student violating any provision of this policy will be subject to disciplinary action, up to and including dismissal.
Policy on Drug and Alcohol Testing
In keeping with the Drug-Free Workplace Act of 1988 and the Drug-Free Schools and Communities Act Amendment of 1989, the unlawful manufacture, distribution, possession or use of a controlled substance is strictly prohibited within the bounds of the Malone campus or any properties leased or controlled by Malone, as well as at any Malone-sponsored activities or events.
Malone officials may conduct drug and/or alcohol testing of students. If a student's drug and/or alcohol test results are positive, the student is responsible for the cost of the test. Drug and/or alcohol tests are conducted without notice in order to ensure accurate testing. Any student may be drug or alcohol tested at any time in order to support Malone's drug free policy. If a student refuses to submit, fully and honestly, to either of these tests, or to sign a release of information form, Malone assumes the student is admitting responsibility for a violation and proceeds accordingly: Any student refusing to take a drug test, or otherwise interfering or failing to cooperate with any such test, is held responsible for the violation of Malone's policy regarding illegal drugs and is suspended immediately. Likewise, any student refusing to take a breathalyzer test is responsible for the violation of intoxication and likely will be suspended.
Positive tests are considered conclusive evidence that a student was in an environment where the prohibited drug or alcohol activity occurred and/or participated in such activity. Challenges to positive drug test based on “second hand smoke,” or similar arguments, are therefore not valid.
Statement Pursuant to Drug Free Schools and Communities Act and Federal Drug-free Workplace Act of 1988.
Malone is committed to providing a healthy and safe environment for its students, faculty and staff. Malone hereby defines below the standards of conduct in relation to the unlawful possession, use, dispensation, or distribution of alcohol or controlled, unauthorized or illegal drugs or substances. Conduct which violates this standard poses unacceptable risks and disregard for the health, safety, and welfare of members of Malone community and shall result in disciplinary action, including compulsory rehabilitation, suspension and/or termination. As a recipient of federal grants and funding, Malone gives this notice to students, faculty and staff that it is in compliance with and shall continue to be in compliance with the Drug-Free Workplace Act of 1988 and the Drug-Free Schools and Communities Act Amendment of 1989. Students, faculty, and staff are herein notified of the standards of conduct which shall be applicable while on Malone property, and elsewhere while on Malone business, and/or while attending Malone-sponsored activities.
1. Statement Required of Recipients of Federal Grants. A signed, written statement is required from all students and staff who are recipients of federal grants, including Pell Grants, certifying their abstinence from unlawful distribution, dispensation, possession or use of a controlled substance.
2. Standards of Conduct. Students, faculty and staff are prohibited from the UNLAWFUL possession, use, dispensation, distribution, or manufacture of illicit drugs whether on Malone property, on Malone business and/or elsewhere while attending Malone-sponsored activities. Further, students, faculty and staff are required to abide by state and local laws concerning alcoholic beverages.
Basically, Ohio laws state that if one is under the age of 21, it is unlawful to: 1) possess or consume alcoholic beverages; 2) misrepresent one's age for the purpose of purchasing alcoholic beverages; or 3) use a fake I.D. to purchase alcoholic beverages no matter what one's age. Ohio law states that it is unlawful to: 1) procure any alcoholic beverages for anyone under 21 years of age; or 2) drink or be drunk in public places (Malone campuses and buildings are considered public places for purposes of these laws).
Furthermore, it is a violation of state law to operate a motor vehicle while under the influence of any substance, which may impair one's driving ability (drugs or alcoholic beverages).
3. Education. Malone will educate the faculty, staff, and students through use of an educational video and written documentation concerning the dangers of drug and alcohol use. Malone's Human Resources Office will work closely with any necessary outside agencies to provide information helpful in the prevention and detection of drug use and to post notices and provide handouts when available in the prevention and detection of these problems.
Malone will support and encourage faculty in incorporating alcohol and drug education into the curriculum where appropriate.
4. Health Risks. The scope and impact of health risks from alcohol and drug abuse are both alarming and well documented, ranging from mood altering to life-threatening, with consequences that extend beyond the individual to family, organizations, and society at large. Malone will attempt to educate its students, faculty and staff that the consumption of alcohol and the use of drugs may alter behavior, distort perception, impair thinking, impede judgment, and lead to physical and/or psychological dependence. Alcohol and/or drug abuse may lead to the deterioration of physical health by causing or contributing to various health conditions including but not limited to fatigue, nausea, personal injury, insomnia, pathological organ damage, certain forms of cancer, heart disease, liver disease, respiratory depression, birth defects, convulsions, coma, and even death.
Alcohol and drug abuse may also result in deterioration of mental health by causing or contributing to various conditions such as increased aggression, hallucinations, depression, disorientation, and psychosis. Alcohol consumption causes a number of marked changes in behavior. Even low doses significantly impair the judgment and coordination required to drive a car safely, increasing the likelihood that the driver will be involved in an accident. Low to moderate doses of alcohol also increase the incidence of a variety of aggressive acts, including spouse and child abuse. Moderate to high doses of alcohol cause marked impairments in higher mental functions, severely altering a person's ability to learn and remember information. Very high doses may cause respiratory depression and death. If combined with other depressants of the central nervous system, much lower doses of alcohol will produce the effects just described.
Repeated use of alcohol can lead to dependence. Sudden cessation of alcohol intake is likely to produce withdrawal symptoms, including severe anxiety, tremors, hallucinations, convulsions, and can be life-threatening. Long-term consumption of large quantities of alcohol, particularly when combined with poor nutrition, can also lead to permanent dam age to vital organs such as the brain and the liver.
Mothers who drink alcohol during pregnancy may give birth to infants with fetal alcohol syndrome. These infants have irreversible physical abnormalities and mental retardation. In addition, research indicates that children of alcoholic parents are at greater risk than other youngsters of becoming alcoholics.
5. Institutional Policy Statement for Employees and Students of Malone. In compliance with the Drug Free Schools and Communities Act Amendments of 1989, Public Law 101-226: Malone recognizes the ill-effects of drugs on the individual, society and the Institution. In order that we might be in compliance with Federal, state, and local law, Malone has established the Drug-Free Workplace Policy for all associates and students. The implications of this policy are that Malone will do whatever is necessary to maintain a drug-free workplace and provide drug counseling for employees and students. Violations of this policy will result in disciplinary action of the employee or student up to compulsory rehabilitation and/or termination or expulsion, depending on the severity of the offense.
The aim of the Drug-Free Workplace Policy is to provide a safe, productive, congenial and scholarly setting in which all can perform their responsibilities.
