Pubdate: Wed, 27 Jul 2005
Source: Mountain Xpress (NC)
Copyright: 2005 Mountain Xpress
Contact:  http://www.mountainx.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/941
Author: Brian Postelle
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/testing.htm (Drug Test)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/youth.htm (Youth)

POSITIVES AND NEGATIVES

Drug Testing To Continue At T.C. Roberson High

T.C. Roberson High School plans to continue its drug-testing program for a 
second year. So far, however, no other Buncombe County school is following 
suit.

Roberson implemented a pilot program last year that randomly tested 
students involved in extracurricular activities. Constitutional issues 
prohibit mandatory testing of the entire student body, because they are 
required by law to be there. But a 2002 Supreme Court decision upheld 
testing students who choose to take part in school sports or other 
after-school activities.

During the 2004-05 school year, Roberson's pilot program screened 175 of 
the school's 1,400 students; none tested positive for drug use, Principal 
Rob Weinkle reports. Calling the program a success, Weinkle recommended in 
May that it be continued.

Assistant Superintendent Tony Baldwin, however, sounded a note of caution. 
"We're still going to have to look at a couple of more years" to get solid 
statistics, he said. "There would be a danger in looking at one year to the 
next." Although drug violations at the school are down from 12 in the 
2003-04 school year to just three in 2004-05, Baldwin said several years' 
worth of data is needed before the program's true value can be assessed.

T.C. Roberson has about 800 student athletes, and nearly 200 students are 
involved in other after-school groups. Despite the testing, the number of 
students taking part in such activities continues to increase, noted Weinkle.

Each week, Keystone Drug Testing Labs of Asheville randomly selects 
anywhere from five to eight students, who submit saliva samples. The tests 
cost $10 apiece, according to Buncombe County Schools Superintendent Cliff 
Dodson.

Any positive test results would be sent to the school system's director of 
student services, Sonia Logan. For a first offense, only the student's 
parents would be notified; it would be up to them to determine any 
disciplinary action, Dodson explained. The superintendent's son, who plays 
football, was one of those chosen this past year. "If he had tested 
positive, the school would be the least of his problems," said Dodson, who 
feels discipline should be left up to parents.

Students who tested positive a second time would be barred from 
extracurricular activities. But students with one positive test are not 
automatically subject to closer scrutiny, said Dodson.

Weinkle, both of whose daughters were selected for drug testing, also 
called the program a success, arguing that the mere threat of potential 
testing serves as a deterrent to drug use. "Students know what is at stake 
and what the consequences are if they test positive," he said. "I think it 
has a positive effect." The drug-testing program, noted Weinkle, has won 
support from the school's Parent Teacher Student Organization, the Parents' 
Advisory Council and various booster clubs.

PTSO President Kathy Eaton agrees. "I don't know a parent who doesn't 
support this," she said. "This makes kids think before making a poor 
choice." Eaton's daughter is a senior at the school.

School board member Diane Shepherd, who represents the Roberson District, 
also supports the testing. "I think it's been a success," she said. "From 
most of the parents I've talked to, they think it's successful too."

"A Terrible Thing"

Former Principal George Drake, who retired from T.C. Roberson at the end of 
the 2003-04 school year, was the first to push for drug testing. According 
to the minutes of the March 2004 Buncombe County Board of Education 
meeting, Drake complimented the Roberson students, parents and community 
but also "stated that drug use is a terrible thing, and parents and 
students need help with the problem."

Not everyone is so enthusiastic about the testing, however. Jim Edmonds, 
who represents the Enka District on the school board, cast the sole vote 
against the pilot program in May of last year.

"The intent of it is good, but it is an invasion of privacy," says Edmonds. 
He also questions the wisdom of targeting the kids who are active in 
extracurricular programs. "This is probably the main group that does not 
[engage] in the most drug use," he notes.

Edmonds, an attorney, says the legal issues involved prevent him from 
supporting the program. "We are treading on ground that we shouldn't be 
stepping on," he asserts, adding that he's heard from others in the 
community who feel the same way.

In late June, school board members circulated an e-mail among themselves to 
gauge the level of support. Although no vote was needed continue the pilot 
program, Edmonds said he remains the only board member who opposes the tests.

"Drugs are a pervasive problem, but I don't think we leave our civil 
liberties at the schoolhouse door," Edmonds observed. He concedes, however, 
that "there are courts that disagree with me."

In 2002, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that a Oklahoma high school's testing 
of students involved in extracurricular activities was not 
unconstitutional. Justice Clarence Thomas wrote: "Somewhat like adults who 
choose to participate in a closely regulated industry, students who 
voluntarily participate in school activities have reason to expect 
intrusions upon normal rights and privileges, including privacy." Examples 
are, in the case of sports, states of communal undress, and in the case of 
other activities, extended time together and cases where students are 
chaperoned. Since then, school boards across the country have considered 
implementing drug tests, with mixed results.

The Transylvania County Schools recently concluded their first year of drug 
tests in two schools and have declared their intention to continue the 
program. Several other North Carolina counties have considered or are 
considering such testing, according to the Drug Policy Alliance, a national 
anti-drug-test advocacy group.

When the Buncombe program was launched last fall, Dodson said it might be 
expanded to other county schools if it were deemed successful. But at this 
point, there are no plans to do so, he told Xpress.

Although the Board of Education must approve the implementation of testing, 
the decision to pursue drug testing is left up to each school's 
administration, Baldwin explained. And with only one year's worth of 
results to examine, other schools have not yet stepped forward.

"It's not something I see happening this year," he said.
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MAP posted-by: Beth