Sex Positive Education for College Students (SPECS) addresses topics such as consent and communication, pleasure, sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and safer sex practices. SPECS knows that Middlebury’s diverse student body includes individuals from varying domestic and international backgrounds with conflicting sexual education experiences. Importantly, such conversations about sexual health are incomplete without acknowledging the role that substances — particularly alcohol — play in shaping sexual experiences and risks, and how harm reduction strategies can provide a solution.
According to a 2017 study conducted by Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health, more than half of undergraduate students who reported experiencing sexual assault indicated that alcohol or another incapacitating substance was involved. Data provided by the National Institute on Drug Abuse further supports this, noting that sexual assaults are more likely to occur in social settings where alcohol is consumed, such as parties and bars. Certain marginalized or vulnerable populations face disproportionately higher risks of sexual assault on college campuses, according to the American Psychological Association.
Given these intersecting risks, harm reduction must be at the core of how colleges educate students about both sex and substance use rather than abstinence, stigmatization or fear-based messaging. At Middlebury, the Health & Wellness Education Office recently renewed its efforts to provide intersectional education on consent and substance use, creating substance-free spaces and working to dismantle the stigma surrounding both sex and substances. Everyone — regardless of whether they choose to use substances — deserves access to safe, consensual and pleasurable sexual experiences.
SPECS uses the Planned Parenthood model of consent that defines consent as a freely given, reversible, informed, enthusiastic and specific agreement to engage in sexual activity. However, alcohol impairs inhibitory control, reduces a person’s ability to communicate effectively and undermines their capacity to give or recognize valid consent. Despite these impairments, 71% of college students surveyed reported confidence in their ability to provide sexual consent while drinking, according to a study published by Ohio State University. Studies like this reveal a need for more nuanced discussion about alcohol and sex.
Alcohol consumption is associated with increased sexual activity, heightened sexual arousal and greater engagement in sexual risk behaviors. It can increase self-confidence and help individuals overcome feelings of social awkwardness, enabling them to engage in enjoyable social and sexual interactions. While alcohol is often involved in instances of sexual misconduct, it can also lead to pleasurable experiences for some, which is why sexual education needs to move beyond abstinence messaging.
A harm reduction approach acknowledges the distinction between intoxication and incapacitation, while emphasizing the importance of proactive communication and boundary-setting. Alcohol does not automatically negate a person’s ability to consent, but it can seriously impact judgment, communication and decision-making. One’s level of impairment is directly related to the amount of alcohol they have consumed, and it ultimately determines one’s capacity to consent to sexual activity.
While intoxication diminishes a person’s ability to communicate effectively, incapacitation — marked by slurred or incomprehensible speech, vomiting, incontinence, unconsciousness or inability to stay awake — entirely eliminates a person’s ability to provide valid consent. Though these states are distinct in theory, recognizing the difference between intoxication and incapacitation can be difficult in practice, prompting the golden rule: When in doubt, wait it out.
In uncertain situations, consent and boundary-setting must remain the priority. Especially on a college campus setting, there is little difference between rushing to an intoxicated sexual encounter on a Friday night and waiting until both people are sober and fully consenting on Saturday, but the reality of violating someone’s consent can result in emotional, psychological or legal consequences.
The practice of proactive communication requires continuous space to express one’s needs, desires and boundaries. As adrienne maree brown, author of “Pleasure Activism: The Politics of Feeling Good,” describes her concept of permeable boundaries, healthy boundaries are flexible and dynamic, adjusting in response to new needs, information, desires and the evolving nature of relationships rather than remaining fixed or rigid.
In this view, consent is not understood as a static agreement or contract, but as an ongoing, relational process. Embracing permeable boundaries encourages individuals to engage in regular communication with themselves and their partners, allowing for natural shifts and adjustments as they occur. This harm reduction approach to boundary-setting recognizes that sustaining consent requires active attention, particularly in environments where substances such as alcohol may affect communication.
For Middlebury students, setting and maintaining permeable boundaries may require a variety of communication strategies and the use of available community resources. Practicing proactive communication can include setting clear expectations before attending social events to checking in with partners during sexual encounters. Utilizing campus resources such as Health and Wellness Education’s free safer sex supplies and health coaching sessions, SPECS workshops, the MiddSafe Confidential Advocates’ hotline and Health Services appointments can also help students navigate sex and substance use. In the broader area, students can access medical treatment at Porter Medical Center and Planned Parenthood.
To reduce instances of sexual violence, we must implement harm reduction-based education. Such a learning process equips students with the skills to navigate the ambiguous situations involving substances through proactive communication and boundary-setting. Sharing these values liberates us from the systems of oppression that sustain fear-based sexual education and creates a sex-positive culture where autonomy prevails.
