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...experimentation alcohol during postsecondary education, but most do not incur significant negative consequences unless their pattern of use is excessive (O'Hare, 1990). Research notes that risk factors for excessive drinking among students differs based on gender, ethnicity, and other demographics of the student, and characteristics of the campus, and surrounding area (Baer, 2002; O'Malley & Johnston, 2002; Presley, et al., 2002). Historically, rates of heavy drinking have been higher for white, male, undergraduate students. Further research is needed among female students, as they react to or may be affected physiologically by alcohol in different ways than men. Alcohol misuse or abuse may also have a detrimental affect on the goals, educational attainments, and potential of success for women.

We compared patterns of alcohol consumption among women at two campuses using results of the Core Alcohol and Drug Survey (CORE). Data were collected at a historically Black (HBCU), and a predominantly White university (PWU) in the same state. Both institutions are public and urban with enrollments less than 10,000 students each. Although both institutions are ethnically diverse, the majority of women were Black and White respectively, as confirmed by the institutions' offices of enrollment. We hypothesized that women at the PWU would report different patterns and significantly higher rates of drinking than those at the HBCU.

Ethnic differences in drinking have been observed in numerous studies. Findings from an earlier CORE Survey demonstrated that Native American and White students had the highest use of alcohol, followed by Hispanic, Black and Asian students (Presley, Meilman, & Cashin, 1996a). Consistent with the CORE Survey, African American students have been noted to drink less frequently and in smaller quantities than other ethnic groups. In a Harvard School of Public Health College Alcohol Study (CAS) survey summary for 2001, 21.7% of African Americans were reported to be heavy drinkers, compared to 50.2% of Whites, 34.4% of Hispanics, 33.6% of Native Americans and 26.2% of Asians (Wechsler, Lee, Kuo, Seibring, Nelson, Lee, 2002). The differences in heavy alcohol consumption among ethnic groups, specifically Black, White, and Hispanic students have been consistent since the 1980s with little evidence of change (O'Malley & Johnston, 2002).

The Higher Education Center for Alcohol and Other Drug Prevention has compiled results of studies on alcohol usage at HBCUs (Kapner, 2003). The Center for Substance Abuse Treatment (CSAT) conducted two of the largest studies at HBCUs between 1998 and 1999, involving more than 10,000 students on 39 campuses. Like the CAS, binge drinking was defined as four or more alcoholic beverages in one sitting during the two weeks prior to the survey. By those measures, binge drinking was reported for 18% and 15% of the sample for the two respective study periods. In a 2001 survey of students among three HBCUs in North Carolina, 10.1% of men, and 7.8% of women in the sample of 1,587 students reported binge drinking using the same...

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