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Letter: Homecoming breath tests

On the night of Sept. 30 at the Glenwood Springs High School Homecoming football game, students were picked from the crowd to be breathalyzed and/or kicked out of the game by members of the GSHS administration. I understand that the intentions of these members were to try to keep students safe that night, but I do not believe this was the appropriate way to go about it.

These certain members proceeded to call students from the crowd who they believed to be intoxicated and address them using disrespectful language. After this, they began to pull students at random to be breathalyzed. This caused other intoxicated students to leave the game, to get into cars and to then drive. That is not safe.

The administration needs to handle any future situations like this in a way that will keep students safe and off of the road, not with fear tactics. Is it more important to get students kicked off their sports teams, to suspend them or given MIPs than it is to make sure they don’t get behind the wheel while under the influence or into a car with someone who is just to avoid getting in trouble? I do not believe so.



There needs to be a focus on educating students on the dangers of drunken driving; students do not need to be humiliated in front of their peers. Though this may seem as if they are being made an example of, this only creates an environment and relationships of distrust and disrespect between the administration and the students. If students felt like their safety mattered more than finding consequences for their actions, they would be more likely to comply with the things asked of them by the administration.

I am in no way condoning underage drinking or saying that students should get away with doing it. I am simply trying to bring attention to the fact that the way they handled the situation that occurred didn’t keep anyone safe, it led to more intoxicated students putting their lives and those of others, in danger. This is not an attempt to bash the administration or the school, but an opportunity to create a spark that can ignite positive change.



Sarah Blevins

Glenwood Springs


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