Pubdate: Tue, 20 May 2003
Source: Virginian-Pilot (VA)
Contact:  2003, The Virginian-Pilot
Website: http://www.pilotonline.com
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/483
Author: Kerry Dougherty

PORTSMOUTH SHOULD DARE TO KEEP KIDS IN PROGRAM

Few things matter more to 13-year-old boys than looking
cool.

Don't believe me? Try outfitting these peer-conscious, middle-school
males in crisp khaki shorts and matching golf shirts.

No way.

That said, one measure of the effectiveness and relevancy of the Drug
Abuse Resistance Education program is that my son, who walks around
with a Billabong surf cap permanently attached to his head, still
wears his DARE T-shirt. From elementary school.

More than just a fashion statement, DARE planted some strong
anti-drug, anti-tobacco seeds in my kid's head.

I water them every chance I get.

Last weekend, for instance, my son was itching to blow his birthday
dough on a new video game. This is often an occasion for
disagreement.

I cringed as he gravitated toward the hugely controversial ``Grand
Theft Auto.''

Then he surprised me. Even though some of his friends play ``Grand
Theft,'' he didn't want it.

``I think it has some drug content,'' my son said,
knowledgably.

Bless you, DARE.

I'm no expert on this program that brings law-enforcement officers
into the classroom to teach fifth-graders about drugs. Some studies
claim it is effective in preventing drug abuse. Others say it's not.

The way I look at it, DARE can't hurt. Parents need all the help they
can get to counteract the permissive messages regarding drugs that
kids are bombarded with from movies, music and the rest of the media.

Fifth grade is the perfect time for this. These 10- and 11-year-olds
are mature enough to understand what's being taught, yet young enough
- -- one hopes, anyway -- to have little first-hand experience with
controlled substances.

``DARE teaches kids how to recognize and resist the direct and subtle
pressure . . . to experiment with alcohol, tobacco, marijuana and
other drugs,'' declares a blurb on DARE's Web site. ``And since 70 to
90 percent of all crime is drug-related, it is absolutely vital that
we reach the children of America before it's too late.''

That said, I was stunned to learn that Portsmouth schools are
scrapping the DARE program next year. This, in a city that recently
experienced a sharp increase in drug-related crime.

In a July 2002 news story about drug problems in Portsmouth, The Pilot
said, ``Reported incidents of crimes related to drug possession and
sales . . . have nearly doubled in two years. . . . And
street-trafficking of cocaine and heroin increased in 2001.''

Portsmouth's drug problem was so severe that it was one of just three
cities selected by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency for inclusion in
the agency's first Integrated Drug Enforcement Assistance program last
year.

Initially, Portsmouth school officials said they were dumping the DARE
program due to a lack of funds.

Then Portsmouth Sheriff Gary W. Waters said he'd absorb the $80,000
tab, even if it meant some staffing shortages.

``It's going to make it a little rougher for our deputies in the
jail,'' the sheriff told me on Monday. ``But a lot of our deputies
have kids of their own. . . . We believe in this program.''

Nevertheless, the new school superintendent -- who questions the
effectiveness of DARE -- declined the offer.

The school district can't afford for its fifth-graders to miss 14
hours of instruction just before they take the SOLs, he said in a news
story last weekend.

When I spoke with Superintendent David C. Stuckwisch on Monday, he
said he'd be willing to let DARE into the K-2 program or sixth,
seventh or eighth grades. But he was not willing to lose prime
instruction time for his fifth-graders.

``It's a matter of priorities,'' he said. ``My No. 1 objective coming
into Portsmouth was to get all of our schools accredited.''

He's right. It is a matter of priorities.

A successful school district turns out students who are academically
sharp, honest and decent. And sober.

The sheriff found the resources for DARE. The schools should find the
time.
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