Pubdate: Wed, 11 Aug 2004 Source: Potomac News (VA) Copyright: 2004 Potomac News. Contact: http://www.potomacnews.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/2924 Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/testing.htm (Drug Test) Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?225 (Students - United States) PRINCE WILLIAM WON'T DRUG TEST STUDENTS Prince William County Public Schools has no intention of following newly passed state guidelines for random student drug testing. The school division has never randomly tested students without cause and will maintain its current policy, according to Superintendent Edward L. Kelly. The Virginia Department of Education approved guidelines for student testing on June 23, 2004, nearly a year after the Virginia General Assembly amended legislation and authorized the enactment of public school guidelines. School divisions are not required to enact mandatory testing, and only two have. Prince William County Public Schools has never randomly tested students and there are no plans to revamp that policy. "We don't want to create an atmosphere in our school that makes students feel that they are in prison or being treated unfairly," said Kelly. The guidelines detail several procedures, including establishing consequences for positive drug test results and explaining that drug testing is a mandatory requirement for participation in extracurricular programs. In addition to deterring drug use, the purpose of the guidelines is to assist school divisions in offering intervention assistance to students who may have addictions and provide education about the dangers of drug use. The guidelines state, for example, that academic penalties should not be imposed for positive test results only, but the loss of participation privileges in extracurricular activities should be. "This is a document that can provide a school division with guidance on how to construct such a policy and carry it out within accordance of the law," said Charles Pyle, director of communication for the Virginia Department of Education. Even so, very few of the state's school divisions have enacted random drug testing procedures. Prince William County does not randomly test athletes either, according to Kelly. "No, the only time we would drug test students is if something had occurred in the building and we thought students would be under the influence. We don't just summarily drug test for that," said Kelly. Drug testing in schools, a historically controversial issue, became a subject for debate again in 1995. That year, the United States Supreme Court upheld the decision of the Vernonia School District, located in Oregon, to randomly test athletes. The court upheld a similar school division decision of an Oklahoma School District. Both cases are referenced in Virginia's new school guidelines. - --- MAP posted-by: Richard Lake