Dan Leitao/The Mirror

It’s the day before the exam that counts for half of your final grade, the hours are ticking away, and the cubicles in DiMenna feel like your own personal prison cell.  Instead of focusing on the words in your textbook, all you hear is the same Taylor Swift song blasting from the headphones of a girl sitting across from you.

But there’s hope. Jumping out of your seat, the solution to all your worries awaits you at the bottom of the staircase.  No, it’s not another cup of coffee from the Chef’s Table, but your friend who conveniently has attention deficit disorder (commonly known as ADD) and a few spare pills to share from the month.

With the pressures of finals week fast approaching, it is no surprise to hear that many college students illegally turn to prescription stimulants such as Adderall and Ritalin to aid their studies.

As college students become more dependent on these types of drugs, what does it mean for the future of academics? Should the illegal use of these drugs be considered a form of cheating, calling for punishment by the University? Wesleyan University has moved in this direction. Should Fairfield?

The History of Adderall and Ritalin Abuse

The illegal use of these drugs on college campuses is not a new occurrence.  The Mirror has covered its growing popularity on the Fairfield University campus for years.

A 2004 article explains the accessibility of the drug. One student said “I take Adderall as often as I can get it, and almost everyone I live with takes it for some purpose.”

An article from the following year describes a student that was legally prescribed Ritalin and considered it a “burden” because so many friends would ask to buy it from her.  She also said that she once had about 25 Ritalin pills stolen from her.

In 2009, an article explained how Adderall was found to not only be used by students on campus as a “study drug” but also as a weight loss pill.

This is not just a problem centered at Fairfield.  Nationwide, college newspapers are reporting the illegal use of drugs like Adderall or Ritalin to aid studies.  In the past few years Boston College, Santa Clara University, University of Delaware, Trinity College, and most recently Wesleyan University are just a few of the schools whose newspapers have featured stories on these “study drugs”.

Usage on College Campuses

According to a 2009 National Survey on Drug Use and Health performed by an agency of the Department of Health and Human Services, full-time college students aged 18 to 22 were twice as likely as their counterparts who were not full-time college students to have used Adderall illegally in the past year.

The study also found that college students who use Adderall illegally are three times as likely as those who do not use the drug to have used marijuana in the past year and eight times as likely to use cocaine in the past year.

According to a survey taken by 20 Fairfield University students, 55 percent said that they have taken a prescription drug like Adderall or Ritalin before.  Out of these students, 47 percent take the drugs illegally, either by purchasing them or getting them for free from a friend. 33 percent of the students rely on the drug at least once or twice a week.

A freshman male said that the drug is very easy to get if you know someone.  He said “within the first week [of coming to Fairfield University] I knew kids who would sell them to me.  I have nothing against it.

The Ethical Debate

The growing demand on college campuses for these “study drugs” has made many people wonder whether it gives the illegal user an unfair advantage over the non-user.

According to The Middletown Press, Wesleyan University, located only about 50 miles away from Fairfield in Middletown, Conn., has taken a stand to combat the illegal use of these prescribed drugs. The administration has modified its student code of conduct because the use of the drug may be enhancing the student’s performance, therefore violating the University’s honor code that states that all work must be completed “without improper assistance.”

Wesleyan’s student newspaper, The Wesleyan Argus, reports that many members of the student body were curious about the misuse of prescription drugs in regard to studying.  The Dean is quoted saying that “most students with whom I’ve discussed the issue feel that it is a form of cheating.”

A sophomore male attending Wesleyan said that so far he hasn’t heard of any one getting in trouble for illegally using Adderall or Ritalin. “The new addition to our honor code is a result of outside pressure and not really about Wesleyan” said the student, who asked not to be identified.

The amendment to the honor code has more to do with “the recent negative media attention surrounding Adderall use on college campuses” he said.

Reactions to Wesleyan’s Decision

News of Wesleyan’s decision that the illegal use of prescription drugs violates the honor code was met with mixed reviews by Fairfield University students.

Some students believe that the illicit use of prescription drugs should be considered cheating because of the unfair advantages it provides and how it goes against the concepts of hard work and integrity.

Jacquie Brimley ’13 feels that “it’s a grey area.”  While there are worse forms of cheating she said, like plagiarism, “taking these drugs is still an unfair advantage unless you’ve been diagnosed with ADD or ADHD.”

“I know you can combat that by saying that people who don’t take them have the same opportunity to buy and use them, but they don’t for a reason- for the concepts of integrity and of actually working for everything that you get in this life” Brimley said.

Bryan Shea ’13 believes that the illegal use of drugs like Adderall and Ritalin to study should not be considered equal to cheating or plagiarism.

“I feel like Adderall simply gives the user motivation and focus, just as much as Red Bull or caffeine does” he said. “Does that mean that one day coffee will be considered illegal, too?”

The Future of the “study drug” at Fairfield

Fairfield University’s drug policy is contained in the student code of conduct, located in the Student Handbook.  A violation of the code of conduct is possession and use or distribution of someone else’s prescription medication.

Dean Thomas Pellegrino discussed the challenging problem that prescription drugs poses on college campuses. “What we have tried to do here is both develop a prohibition, while also raising attention to the occurrence of this behavior on college campuses,” he said.

“That problem becomes exacerbated when students perceive such medication as giving their peers an ‘edge’ or advantage in relation to things like energy level, alertness, etc.” he said.

“Students can be lured into a false sense of the safety in using and sharing these drugs” he said. “Unauthorized use of these medications can have dangerous, if not deadly, results.”

Pellegrino believes that there needs to be an increased awareness of the dangers of prescription drugs on campus. “Our sanctions for violations of our prescription drug policy therefore focus on education and counseling, in an effort to shed light on what should be viewed as dangerous behavior” he said.

Rev. Francis T. Hannafey worries for the health of the students who illegally use prescription drugs like Adderall and Ritalin because of the potential side effects.  As a Jesuit priest and Ethics professor he is “personally saddened to hear that students feel that they need prescription drugs to study.”

“What are we communicating to our students about healthy and balanced living?” he asks.  The goal of gaining an education is not solely to become successful. It is “much deeper and more complex” he said.

FUSA President Edwin Muniz feels that in a world where there are so many distractions, like Facebook, some students feel the need to turn to these drugs to focus.  He says that the students are not trying to cheat, but “just get their work done in a timely manner.”

He hopes that administration and faculty will be “proactive” about this issue and work to “remedy the problem” because it is a major concern of the student body.

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