Al Wilson

Marijuana Story

Marijuana usage has risen 27 percent nationally in the past year. Top officials of Nicholls State
University schools site two major reasons for the increase, the environment and mentality of students
toward the drug.

The largest drug based survey in the nation, Monitoring the Future, is an annual survey that has
reporting on drug use in the United States since 1975. The survey reported a jump in usage from 30 to
38 percent.

The perception of marijuana has fueled the usage among college students. The Director of
Student Judicial Services at Nicholls, Tommy Ponson said “Students at Nicholls are using marijuana
recreationally due to an attitude that it is not that bad and that they will not be caught.”

This matches information from the survey, which reports that only 35 percent of all students
find marijuana dangerous. Ponson elaborated that while the drug is now perceived is less dangerous, it
is still illegal and students who are caught will be prosecuted.

The Pew Research Center, who data mines all U.S. government information, noted that 69
percent of all participants surveyed by the government found alcohol more destructive to a person’s life
then marijuana.

Adrienne Bolton, the director of counseling department, cited the environment the student
surrounds themselves with as a critical reason for usage, and that a family’s stance on the drug can lead
to usage.

Ponson said “If a student is in a clique of people who use marijuana they are also likely to be caught up
in the drug as well.” He related this to athletes and Greek fraternities, when a freshman is exposed to
marijuana by older students, they will use this in order to be “cool.” Bolton said “Many students who
begin with their friends at an innocent level can escalate into more frequent use or use of harder drugs.”

The two campus experts agreed that while marijuana has not shown substantial health
problems to the user, that it is a gateway drug to other harsher and more aggressive drugs. Ponson said
‘When marijuana is used it becomes a gateway, it can lead to the student endangering themselves and
those around them.” Bolton added on the topic, “While marijuana addiction counseling is thin, most
drug users who seek rehab for harsher drugs admit to have started with marijuana.”