Ohio University is much more than 'party school'

(This article originally appeared on the Transcendent TV & Media site.)

Work hard, play hard.

The annual Princeton Review ranking of universities on various attributes, or lack thereof, has rated Ohio University, Athens, Ohio, the #1 "party school" in the U.S.

News articles on the ranking have noted the rowdy Halloween parties in Athens along with beer-drinking and other alcohol use.

Yet, if we look at the deeper and more comprehensive picture at Ohio U., there probably could be a clarification about whether students are studying hard as well as having fun and blowing off steam.

The well-rounded university has a fine medical school, top mass communications programs and other respected programs in a wide range of fields.

PAST AND PRESENT

Ohio U. alumni include Matt Lauer of NBC's Today show, FOX News chief Roger Ailes, journalist Clarence Page, former Ohio governor and U.S. senator George Voinovich, and actors Ed O'Neill, Richard Dean Anderson and Paul Newman, who attended OU during World War II as part of a Navy pilot candidate program (he washed out because he was color blind).

Two of these alumni have established activities at OU in their names: The Voinovich School of Leadership and Public Affairs and the Roger E. Ailes Newsroom at the Scripps College of Communication.

Many other alumni have been successful in many professional fields. Most look back fondly at their time at OU.

What are some of the factors that may have contributed to the dubious ranking of Ohio U. as a premier party school?

In small-town Athens, students tend to focus their activities on the university and the uptown area, rather than what might be available at a college in a larger city. Additionally, nearly all students reside in the Athens area, rather than commute.

Student demonstrations and disturbances in the late 1960s and early 1970s were in large part due to protests against the Vietnam War. Yet, years after that war ended, rowdy spring student disturbances at OU continued, apparently in some kind of misguided "tradition."

BEER AND BEHAVIOR

In those days, Ohio law (and many other states) allowed people to drink "low" 3.2 percent beer at age 18 through 20. Back then, students could go into a tavern or restaurant in Athens or elsewhere and sit around drinking low beer and having a bite to eat. Drinking low beer rarely resulted in significant intoxication. At age 21, "high" beer (6 percent), wine and hard alcohol could be purchased.

According to some researchers, including a national group of university officials, this makes sense by allowing young adults to learn how to handle alcohol gradually and legally.

However, during the Reagan administration, in a federal power vs. states' rights scenario, the federal government pressured states to adopt a uniform age 21 law covering all alcohol, even low beer. This helped drive college student and young adult drinking underground. Rather than legally drinking low beer, young adults acquired stronger drinks.

In the Appalachian region where Ohio U. is located, there is a history that parallels this issue somewhat. Before, during and after Prohibition, moonshine was distilled, distributed and consumed despite the efforts of federal and local peace officers tasked with preventing Americans from drinking alcoholic beverages.

Today, there may even be similar activities afoot. There are rumors that medical marijuana is also grown in the vast stretches of forests and farmlands in the Appalachian region.

Despite the Princeton Review ranking, those who have experienced Ohio University and those who care to look deeper into the character of the Athens community can easily conclude that this fine higher-education institution offers a rich and rewarding college experience for current, past and future students.

NOTE TO READERS: Hammons is the author of the novels "Mission Into Light" and the sequel "Light's Hand." Read more about the books on the Barnes & Noble website. Hammons' first novel "Mission Into Light" is now available as a NOOK Book e-book on the Barnes & Noble website. His second novel "Light's Hand" is also now a NOOK Book e-book from Barnes & Noble. For more information, please visit the Joint Recon Study Group and Transcendent TV & Media sites and have a look around.

Readers who enjoyed this article may also like US space activities evolving – will efforts help Americans?, Extraterrestrials curious about American football?, 'Roger E. Ailes Newsroom' at top college media program created in 2007, Highly-advanced spacecraft to replace space shuttle?, Healthy, safe living should be part of national discussion, ESP may be useful in defense, health, survival, unconventional areas, 'Goats' movie helps us stare at human mind, Health consciousness studies at U. of Arizona relevant in shootings?, Space psychology relevant for life on Earth, Journalism's dilemma – covering weird science, extraterrestrials and 'White House press briefing' on Roswell: National security, public safety, scientific understanding.