Pubdate: Fri, 17 Mar 2000 Source: Oklahoman, The (OK) Copyright: 2000 The Oklahoma Publishing Co. Contact: P.O. Box 25125, Oklahoma City, OK 73125 Feedback: http://www.oklahoman.com/?ed-writeus Website: http://www.oklahoman.com/ Forum: http://www.oklahoman.com/forums/ Author: Bobby Ross Jr. ANTI-DRUG EFFORT LOSES U.S. FUNDS Some Oklahoma law enforcement officials were surprised Thursday to learn that a state board has decided to cut hundreds of thousands of dollars in funding for DARE anti-drug programs. The decision by the state Drug and Violent Crime Grant Board means that Oklahoma will stop using federal grant money to help cities and counties start DARE -- Drug Abuse Resistance Education -- programs, The Oklahoman has learned. "I hate to hear that," said Walt Brown, undersheriff of Caddo County in southwest Oklahoma. "It's been a good program and has worked well for us in this county." Kingston Police Chief John Canoe said he has sent letters to state officials protesting the decision. "We stand to lose a DARE officer out of Madill who comes into Kingston to teach our fifth- and sixth-graders," Canoe said. "It doesn't look good." Nearly $700,000 in federal grant funds were awarded this fiscal year to help more than 20 Oklahoma communities pay DARE officers to teach school children about the dangers of drugs, gangs and violence. Typically, the grant program has given communities up to four years of funding to create DARE programs, said Kathy Sharpe, a grant programs administrator at the state District Attorneys Council. After the four years of grants, the city or county has been expected to find local money for the DARE program. But the state board that decides how to spend Oklahoma's share of federal drug and violent crime grant money has decided that DARE is no longer a high priority. Instead, Sharpe said Thursday, funding priorities for the 2000-2001 fiscal year "will be on criminal history information systems and meth lab interdictions and more of an enforcement impact." "Hence, the funds will not be going to the funding of individual DARE officers," Sharpe said. DARE funding already had declined in previous years, dropping from $919,709 in 1997-98 to $800,981 last year. This year's state funding is $693,276. According to meeting minutes obtained by The Oklahoman, the board voted unanimously in September to eliminate DARE funding next year, except for the state training center operated by the Department of Public Safety. Voting "yes," according to the minutes, were as follows: Woodward County District Judge Dean Linder; Suzanne McClain Atwood, executive coordinator of the District Attorneys Council; Malcom Atwood, director of the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs Control; Muskogee County District Attorney John David Luton; and Scott Watkins, designee for Public Safety Commissioner Bob Ricks. Also voting "yes" were Jerry Hire, designee for Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation Director DeWade Langley; Kenny Holloway, designee for Kathy Waters of the state Corrections Department; Fred Means, designee for Oklahoma Attorney General Drew Edmondson; Ann Domin, chief of criminal justice planning for the Indian Nations Council of Governments; Stillwater Police Chief Norman McNickle; Osage County Sheriff Russell Cottle; and Jerry Regier, director of the state Office of Juvenile Affairs. However, the Stillwater police chief said the minutes were wrong and that he was absent that day. "Frankly, I've made some inquiries, and I was just told the board had decided to move some other direction," McNickle said Thursday. "As you might imagine, I'm a little concerned." McNickle said he plans to bring up the issue when the board meets next week for the first time in months. "The majority of those grants ... are, in general, (for) smaller agencies that don't have a lot of discretionary funds that they can use to fund the DARE program," he said. "It may be the only way some agencies can do it." Like many Oklahoma communities, Stillwater funds its own DARE program. Statewide, DARE reached 69,482 students in 727 schools last year, said Lt. Herbert McDonald of the Department of Public Safety. There are about 200 DARE officers statewide, said McDonald, the program's state coordinator. While popular, DARE's effectiveness in keeping children from experimenting with drugs has received mixed reviews nationally. Nevertheless, law enforcement officials contacted Thursday praised the program. "Due to the rapport that our officer has with kids all over the county in various schools, I know that he's helped some kids through personal problems ... and family-wise and otherwise," said Brown, the Caddo County undersheriff. "We get a lot of teachers and parents who have bragged on the program." DARE is more than warnings about drugs, alcohol and gangs, McDonald said. "What we're trying to do is give them a sense of self esteem, a sense of self worth," he said. McClain Atwood said the board chose to focus funding on two areas: the need for more money for multicounty crime-fighting task forces and for enhancing criminal history computer systems. The Guthrie Police Department has received a state DARE grant the past three years. Next year would have been the last grant, but Police Chief Jim Bishop is still concerned about what losing the funding will mean. "I'm a little disappointed, because our budget isn't to the point where we can probably completely inherit this (DARE officer) position and not have to trim some other areas," Bishop said. - --- MAP posted-by: Keith Brilhart