BetOnU Helps Students Understand Their Gambling Behavior; NCRG Campaign Encourages College Health Professionals and Administrators to Get Involved
Mar 18, 2014
BOSTON – As the NCAA basketball tournament hits its stride, fans around the United States are filling out brackets and possibly placing bets on the game. College students gamble nearly as much as adults, and research shows that 6 percent develop some form of gambling problem that can result in psychological difficulties, unmanageable debt and failing grades.
To address this issue, the National Center for Responsible Gaming (NCRG) today launched its College Gambling Awareness Campaign, bringing new resources towww.CollegeGambling.org. These new and invaluable resources, including the BetOnU College Gambling Survey, a shareable video and an information-packed toolkit, were developed to further help college health professionals and administrators educate students about gambling-related harms and responsible gaming.
“For the past six years, the NCRGhas been committed to educating the 75 percent of college students that have gambled in the past year, and provide recovery-oriented measures for those who may need help,” said Christine Reilly, senior research director of theNCRG. “Educating students about gambling-related harms and responsible gaming will help them develop healthy behaviors that they can carry with them further into adulthood.”
Developed in 2011,CollegeGambling.orgis a science-based resource to help colleges and universities address gambling and gambling-related harms on college campuses. The website brings together the latest research and best practices in responsible gaming and the field of addiction awareness and prevention.CollegeGambling.orgprovides free resources for university administrators, campus health professionals, students and parents to help address this issue in the way best suited to the needs of each campus.
The NCRG’s2014 College Gambling Awareness Campaign features several new resources onCollegeGambling.org, including:
TheBetOnU College Gambling Survey, The Facts about College Gambling video and the toolkit for college health professionals and administrators are all available for free onCollegeGambling.org.
“BetOnU and the college gambling video are two tools that college health professionals and university administrators can easily integrate into their existing programs,” said Reilly. “We strongly encourage all colleges and universities to link toCollegeGambling.organd share the BetOnU College Gambling Survey and the video on their institutions’ websites and via social media outlets.”
The development ofCollegeGambling.orgwas guided by an advisory committee of leading college and university health and student life professionals.CollegeGambling.orgbuilds on the recommendations of the Task Force on College Gambling Policies, which provides schools with a roadmap for reducing gambling among students and enabling those who are struggling with addiction to participate more fully in college life.
For more information, visitwww.CollegeGambling.org. To learn more about the NCRG, visitwww.ncrg.org.