For more information on the CORE program or to apply: Contact Sam Randall at samantha.randall@colorado.edu or 303-492-9642, or visit colorado.edu/recoverycenter/core.

Starting this fall, students who are choosing a drug- and alcohol-free lifestyle can opt to live in a new sober residential community at the University of Colorado.

CU, long known for its reputation as a party school

, has created the Community for Students in Recovery, or CORE, a housing option that aims to support students in recovery from substance-use disorders and students who are choosing to lead substance-free lives.

The residential program was inspired by the success of CU’s Collegiate Recovery Center, which opened in August 2013. It’s a warm, inviting space on the ground floor of the student center where sober people can hang out, participate in activities and find a community.

Shortly after launching the center, director Danny Conroy said he started to get phone calls and questions from students about a sober housing option.

“We started getting calls from prospective students who are in recovery who were looking at the University of Colorado but saying, ‘Hey, look, my parents aren’t going to go for this unless they know there’s a lot of support for me,'” Conroy said. “Students whose parents’ perception of CU is that it’s a party school so ‘forget it.'”

Up to 14 students can live in a dedicated wing of one of the Williams Village residence halls in the program’s first year, Conroy said. The deadline to apply to live in the sober community is May 1.

Students who have abstained from all drugs and alcohol for at least six months are preferred for the community, which has apartment-style living arrangements.

Participants are expected to sign a community code of conduct that fosters healthy relationships and personal accountability, and they should have their own personal interest in sobriety, Conroy said.

“Most of the students will have been through treatment of some type, and they’ve made a decision to stay clean and sober,” Conroy said. “It’s a community of students who have said, ‘I don’t use drugs or drink; I want to be around other people who are sober-friendly.'”

Awareness

College-aged students tend to have higher rates of drug and alcohol dependency, which means there’s a critical need for campus programs and communities to support students in recovery or who are choosing sobriety, said Sam Randall, coordinator for the CORE program.

In 2013, young adults between ages 18 and 25 had the highest rate of illicit drug dependency and abuse at 7.4 percent, according to a survey by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. The next highest rate was 3.5 percent for the 12-17 age range.

The data on alcohol tells a similar story. The administration’s survey for 2013 found that the 21-25 age range had the highest rate of alcohol dependency and abuse at 13.1 percent, compared to 9.1 percent among those ages 26 to 44.

“It can be challenging no matter where you are,” Randall said of recovery. “What we do know is that in a college environment, there are added pressures of classroom work, deadlines, as well as the social pressure to use.”

Sometimes recovering students are dealing with the campus judicial system or the legal system on top of trying to maintain their sobriety, she said.

But research and experience has shown that providing those students with a support network and sober-friendly activities can help, Randall said.

“We hear this from our students,” she said. “There are some who have said, ‘There’s no way I would’ve been able to stay at CU without the support of the (Collegiate Recovery Center) community. Other students who were at CU, left and received great treatment and established a good foundation in their recovery would not have been able to return to CU if they didn’t have this community and these resources.”

Retention

Helping students stay on campus and succeed in their classes aligns with Chancellor Phil DiStefano’s goal to significantly improve campus graduation rates.

“We’re very excited about it,” said Deb Coffin, vice chancellor for student affairs. “We have been really pleased with the role that the CU Collegiate Recovery Center has been playing in helping with the retention and success of our students who are in recovery, and we think this residential program is really going to be even one more level of support for them.

“I’m absolutely sure that as we track these students over time, we will find this program made a difference in their ability to stay in school and be successful.”

Another important component of the new housing option is making more people aware of substance-use disorders and their options for getting help.

Randall said she hopes the new housing option will help reduce the stigma associated with treatment and recovery.

She also hopes it will help people realize that not all CU students are hard-core partiers.

“We know here on campus that actually there are a number of students — it’s a great number more than many people realize — who are choosing to live a sober lifestyle or who may use substances but in moderation,” she said. “And often, unfortunately, the party culture gets more of the attention. So part of this is helping to dispel that myth and do some education.”

Sarah Kuta: 303-473-1106, kutas@dailycamera.com or twitter.com/sarahkuta