The bell rang Monday morning at , signaling the beginning of the advisory period at New Trier High School, and that meant it was time to hear the weekend stories. I sat affixed in my chair as my classmates filed in, smiling and talking about the highlights. Initially, these stories caught me by surprise, but after the first few weeks, they no longer shocked me, bothered me, or even made the tiniest footnote in my head.
Drinking was the norm. It was inevitable and most high schoolers did it. Even though I chose not to drink, I felt the culture all around me, from the conversations to the social media posts.
But I didn't think twice; I figured it happened at this large scale everywhere. That's where I was wrong. According to the Youth Risk Behavior Survey, an anonymous survey taken every year in physical education see fig. This year's data is not an isolated incident. This doesn't even account for underclassmen, and, in my experience, there were some heavy drinkers as early as sophomore year.
Wealthy suburbs typically have elevated teenage drinking rates, and New Trier is no exception. Located in the affluent city of Winnetka, Illinois and composed of several other well-off towns, the New Trier school district is amongst the wealthiest in the nation. According to a study done by Suniya Luthar and Chris Sexton, attending a wealthy school district directly correlates to characteristics that lead to binge drinking.
First off, the "achievement pressures" are very high. During the school week, students are under immense pressure from their parents, peers, and themselves to excel in their studies and extracurriculars in order to get into a good college. As a result, when the weekend comes around, they like to unwind and destress, often using alcohol. One subject interviewed for the study stated, "we work so hard during the week, because of college pressure, that by the weekends we're totally, like, let the games begin," and this sentiment is echoed at New Trier.
