Utah parents may soon get a question from their school-aged kids about alcohol

A DABS employee bags wine for a customer at a new DABS state liquor store in the Foothill neighborhood at 1615 S. Foothill Dr. in Salt Lake City on March 31, 2025. (Tess Crowley, Deseret News)

SALT LAKE CITY — Underage drinking is in the cross hairs of a campaign happening during Red Ribbon Week this year, which highlights the importance of living a drug-free life.

Utah PTA and Parents Empowered are helping school-aged children in Utah turn the tables on their parents by creating homework that students take home for their parents to complete.

The homework asks parents to explain the family rule about underage drinking. The goal is to get students and parents to talk, write down their answers and post it somewhere in the home as a constant reminder.

According to Parents Empowered, a child's brain keeps developing until they are in their mid-20s. Alcohol can impact learning and memory as well as impulse control.

At 3.4%, Utah's teen drinking rate is half the national average according to America's Health Rankings.

— Tammy Kikuchi, KSL

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