The Indiana Area Collaborative Team, or I-ACT, held their meeting Monday afternoon as they continued to prepare for the upcoming IUPatty’s weekend.
Authorities will be treating this IUPatty’s like they have in previous years, with borough and state police ready to respond to any calls, and assistance being brought in from neighboring municipalities. Also, there are efforts underway to spread the word to students and their peers coming into town for the celebrations that some behaviors will not be tolerated through a movement called “IUPLeads”.
The program encourages student groups to start spreading positive messages through making yard signs, utilizing social media to spread messages from IUP’s office of Alcohol, Tobacco and other drugs, handing out water on Saturday, refraining from selling T-Shirts with pro-drinking messages or references, and encouraging people to have safe, legal and healthy fun over this weekend. Ann Sesti, the director of the Alcohol, Tobacco and other drugs office said that several student organizations have already signed up to be a part of this social movement, and they expect more groups to register later on.
IUP SGA President Brian Swatt said that a lot of students have been spreading the word that they are getting tired of the negative image they get.
While the bulk of IUPatty’s activities are expected to take place from Thursday night to early Sunday morning, activities have been scheduled for the whole week.
