West Texas A&M University recently announced is has blocked all gambling-related websites from anyone using devices owned by the school or anyone using the wireless Internet on campus. Clearly, offshore gambling sites are the school’s main target.
Examples of those types of companies are offshore sportsbooks, casinos and Daily Fantasy Sports operators, among others.
Texas online casinos and sportsbooks are still illegal. So, West Texas A&M’s fight against online gambling is not aimed at operators such as DraftKings or FanDuel. Those operators don’t allow Texans to access their sites because their services are currently illegal in the state.
Gambling sites being targeted by West Texas A&M
This website blocking was announced by the President of West Texas A&M, Walter V. Wendler, in a letter he penned and posted on his website. He wrote, in part:
“In response to these challenges, West Texas A&M University will not allow access for any student, faculty or staff member to online gambling sites utilizing state resources, including university-supported Internet.”
While he did not point out any particular gambling operators, looking at the gambling landscape in Texas, it’s not hard to figure out the sites Wendler is targeting.
There are no legal sportsbooks or online casinos in Texas in the traditional sense.
What is legal are Texas sweepstakes casinos and social sportsbooks, the Texas lottery and a small number of retail casinos solely operated by tribes in the state.
What is clearly illegal are a number of offshore online casinos and sportsbooks located in foreign countries. Those entities are likely the target of West Texas A&M’s ban.
How the university is blocking gambling sites
No details have been shared regarding how West Texas A&M is blocking these sites, but the technology is common.
Many schools, at all levels, have some sort of website blocker built into their online infrastructure. Usually, these blockers take the form of software on school-owned devices and a website blocker within the wireless router that students and faculty use to connect to the Internet on campus. That technology can be fine-tuned to block any sites West Texas A&M decides to block.
According to a post in the West Texas A&M University student paper, the school appears to be following a similar process.
“Under the new policy, effective immediately, WT students, faculty and staff members will not be allowed to access any online gambling site utilizing state resources, including any WT-owned cell phones, laptops, tablets, desktops, and other Internet-connected devices.
“Such websites also will be blocked for anyone using WT-provided WiFi, which includes visitors to Palo Duro Canyon State Park, Panhandle-Plains Historical Museum, the WT Enterprise Center and Harrington Academic Hall WTAMU Amarillo Center.”
These are not full proof measures, however. Unless there is some geolocation blocker installed – the same kind that keeps sportsbook users from betting in states where sports betting is illegal, for example – users could use their own cellular data to access these sites. And users who use a VPN can bypass these blockers. This is more of a step toward a solution as opposed to the solution itself.
West Texas A&M University is aiming to protect students
According to Wendler, these actions are being taken to protect students from the potential pitfalls of gambling at a young age. Also, the aim is to foster a community of academic excellence.
Within the letter penned by Wendler, he claimed that 6% of college students have issues with problem gambling. That is twice the national percentage of adults with gambling issues. He went on to say that college students have a larger issue with gambling addiction. For many, it is their first time overseeing their own finances.
Wendler said the lack of experience in the world for students makes them vulnerable to problem gambling practices.
“This inexperience can make them susceptible to the allure of quick wins through gambling,” he wrote. “And there is the excitement of risk-taking behaviors that plague many human beings at every age level but are especially seductive to young men.”
The West Texas A&M President continued by saying that 20% of students with gambling problems are dipping into student loans, credit cards, and personal loans to sustain their addiction. Wendler also noted the stress of college can make gambling feel like an escape. Also, gambling can falsely appear as a method to make a quick buck.
“Students often face significant financial pressures, including paying for tuition, books and living expenses, among other factors,” Wendler wrote. “The prospect of so-called ‘easy’ money through gambling can seem like an attractive solution despite the high risks involved. Such engagement leads to a decline in academic performance.”
Wendler ended his letter by mincing no words. He feels the job of West Texas A&M University is to bring out the most in its students. Access to gambling will only hinder those efforts, he wrote.
“The impacts of predatory gambling are real. College students at a particularly formative stage in their lives can develop habits and lifestyles that are akin to drug and substance abuse.
“There is not a single thread of evidence showing predatory gambling has a positive impact on academic excellence. And redefining excellence is our first job.”
Texas problem gambling resources
The easiest way to find help for problem gambling is to access the National Council on Problem Gambling’s nationwide hotline: 1-800-GAMBLER (1-800-426-2537).
There are also a number of problem gambling resources in Texas.
