“Drugs and alcohol don’t kill you enough,” said Matt Bellace, motivational speaker and comedian, to a crowd of approximately 50 FDU students, on Tuesday, Oct. 21. Bellace, an energetic and charismatic speaker, started off his lecture, “How to Get High, Naturally,” by pointing out that scare tactics rarely work. He also introduced specific positive tactics to keep students from drinking and doing drugs. With the prevailing occurrences of binge drinking, drug overdoses, and alcohol poisoning, Bellace makes a valid point trying to motivate students to eliminate drug and alcohol use from their lives.

The event was hosted by Counseling Services, the Dean of Students, the Athletic Department and the Office of the Provost. The audience consisted primarily of freshmen and resident assistants.

Bellace, who has a Ph.D. in clinical neuropsychology from Drexel University, has been a motivational speaker and comedian since 1995, according to his Web site. A regular on truTV’s “The Smoking Gun Presents,” as well as Sirius and XM Satellite Radio’s Comedy Channel, Bellace entertained the students with personal anecdotes of his own college experience.

His program discussed the natural highs in life, which can be achieved through daily activities such as laughing, exercising, or spending time with friends. The natural highs are safe and healthy alternatives to drugs and alcohol, which are obviously prevalent on all college campuses, including FDU. Bellace introduced his L.E.A.D concept to the eager audience, which stands for: Lean on healthy people for support, Express yourself in a healthy way, Achieve natural highs, and Don’t be afraid to take a stand. During his time spent at Bucknell University, Bellace explained how he created a student group C.A.L.V.I.N. & H.O.B.B.E.S. (Creating A Lively Valuable Ingenious New Habit of Being (at) Bucknell (and) Enjoying Sobriety) that provided students with a social college experience that does not involve drugs or alcohol. Bellace created the group because he realized that many of the social activities taking place at Bucknell University, a well-known “party school,” involved drugs and alcohol. C.A.L.V.I.N. & H.O.B.B.E.S. paved the way for a multitude of other organizations with similar goals in mind. At present time, “there are at least four similar organizations at various colleges in New Jersey, and the organization at Bucknell is celebrating its 15th year running strong,” according to Bellace’s Web site.

After his lecture, Bellace hosted a comedy night with Ted Alexandro, a stand-up comedian who has appeared on “The Late Show with David Letterman,” “Late Night with Conan O’Brien,” and “Jimmy Kimmel Live.” The comedy show event was held at 9 p.m. in Lenfell Hall and the attendance drastically increased to include about 200 students, mostly freshmen. The event, which was received extremely well by the audience, was an extension of Bellace’s earlier lecture, a testimony that laughter really can produce a natural high.

KIM THRASHER
Staff Writer