Pubdate: Mon, 26 Nov 2001 Source: Athens Banner-Herald (GA) Copyright: 2001 Athens Newspapers Inc Contact: http://www.onlineathens.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1535 Author: Kate Carter Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/youth.htm (Youth) DRUG CULTURE PERSISTS IN A-C HIGH SCHOOLS Is the teen-age drug culture merely a faint memory from times of flower power and Woodstock? Nope. In Athens-Clarke County, drugs are still very much in use among some members of the high school population. But as always, there are the users and the non-users; the sellers and the buyers. Some students paint pictures of a drug-laden lifestyle, while others say they refrain both from doing drugs and having friends that do drugs. As the Clarke County School District discusses implementing random drug testing for high school athletes next fall and drug dog searches even earlier, educators, administrators, teachers, parents and students are all wondering what, exactly, might be gleaned from the results. And, perhaps more importantly, those who have experienced tragic loss due to drugs are hoping a more pro-active, anti-drug attitude will prevail in district schools. ''I think we've got significant concern about drugs,'' said Clarke County Schools Superintendent Lewis Holloway, who is drafting a letter to parents regarding drug dogs in school. ''My hope is that both of these measures will show that there's not a serious problem, though.'' Former Clarke County Board of Education member Anne Cooper lost her youngest son, Todd, a Clarke Central student who stepped into traffic on Timothy Road early on a school morning three years ago. He was under the influence of LSD, a drug he had bought in school, according to Cooper. As a board member, Cooper lobbied for the use of drug dogs after her son's death, but it did not have sufficient support from the board. Since then, Cooper has campaigned against drugs in the community and worked on the development of a program called Prime for Life Under 21 - -- a drug and alcohol prevention course that first requires people to admit that tragedy can happen to them. ''It is past time that the school district takes action,'' said Cooper. ''I think there has been significant progress made (since 1998), but drugs are probably still on campus.'' Indeed, many students attest to the fact that drugs are available on school campuses. The ''Drug Free Zone'' sign outside Cedar Shoals High School makes Stefanie Whorton -- student council president and avowed non-user of drugs, alcohol or cigarettes -- chortle. ''It's a joke,'' she said. Whorton and Erica Harrison, Cedar Shoals senior class president, say drugs are available on campus, but both feel strongly that they are not a rampant problem. Both say ''peer pressure'' does not justify students' excuses for doing drugs. According to Whorton and Harrison, alcohol and marijuana are the drugs of choice -- and many people find it easier to purchase marijuana than alcohol. But they both have witnessed only one drug bust in their nearly four years at Cedar Shoals, which they say is insignificant. ''Outside of school, you're never gonna know how many people do drugs,'' said Harrison. ''In school? I honestly might be oblivious to it, but I don't see people walking down the halls doing drugs. I don't think it's any different than the 1950s.'' Three schoolmates who wish to remain anonymous, however, paint a different picture. They slip in and out of the drug lingo easily, describing blueberry stuff, northern lights, DaVinci's, Buddhas and BC's -- all descriptions of various types of drugs. They said it is relatively easy to sneak off the school premises to smoke pot. They noted that psilocybin mushrooms -- hallucinogens -- are extremely popular, as is ecstasy, but both are relatively hard to find on campus. All agreed that the majority of people they know at school do drugs regularly; mostly outside of school, but sometimes before school or during school hours. ''Unless you're dressing in all black with a lot of piercings, you're fine,'' said one of the students regarding teachers' and administrators' suspicions about drug use among the student population. Cedar Shoals Principal Charles Worthy and Clarke Central High School Principal Maxine Easom are supportive of random drug testing and bringing in drug dogs to detect illegal goods on campus, though Easom emphasizes that the policy is not yet written. Federal law dictates that any random drug sampling on school campus can apply only to athletes because drug use could easily endanger their safety -- or others' safety -- while playing sports. ''If we have any drugs at all, then it's a problem,'' said Easom. ''And we do have them. Any school in America will.'' ''We do find students with possession of drugs,'' said Worthy. ''We follow the student code of conduct policy when dealing with them.'' According to Worthy and Easom, the general policy for a student caught selling drugs is recommended expulsion, and the on-campus police officer files charges against the student, treating him or her like any other Clarke County resident. Students 17 and younger may face hearings in juvenile court. If a student is found in possession of drugs, he or she is suspended for 10 days pending a due-process hearing with the school district. Up to 45 days of alternative school are often recommended for those students, and charges are also usually filed by the campus police officer, often landing the student in juvenile court. According to Easom, if a student is merely suspected of being under the influence of drugs, their parents are usually contacted by school officials. Although specific numbers of drug offenses at each high school were unavailable, from January through April of this year 42 juvenile drug offenses were brought before the Athens-Clarke County Juvenile Court, according to Associate Judge Robin Shearer. - --- MAP posted-by: Josh