Wellness & Prevention Services

During the Fall 2013 semester, Appalachian was awarded a grant from the North Carolina Department of Health & Human Services (opens in a new tab) for Problem Gambling Outreach, Prevention, and Awareness. The goals of this project are to raise awareness about problem gambling on our campus, increase screening for problem gambling, and collect data about the prevalence of problem gambling behaviors among students.

What is gambling and is it prohibited at Appalachian State?

The Appalachian State University Code of Student Conduct defines gambling as "Playing any game of chance/skill for money or other stakes or staking or risking money or anything of value on the outcome of a game/event involving chance, except as permitted by law." The minimum sanction for gambling in the Code is a written warning. To read more about gambling in Appalachian's Code of Student Conduct, visit the Office of Student Conduct (opens in a new tab) website. You may also read about the similarities and differences (opens in a new tab) between gambling and alcohol and other drugs.

What is 'problem gambling'?

Problem gambling is gambling behavior which causes disruptions in any major area of life: psychological, physical, social or vocational. The term "Problem Gambling" includes, but is not limited to, the condition known as "Pathological", or "Compulsive" Gambling, a progressive addiction characterized by increasing preoccupation with gambling, a need to bet more money more frequently, restlessness or irritability when attempting to stop, "chasing" losses, and loss of control manifested by continuation of the gambling behavior in spite of mounting, serious, negative consequences (Source: National Council on Problem Gambling (opens in a new tab), February 27, 2014).