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DRUG DOGS TO BE PART OF CHS, CMS HALLS

COLUMBUS - Drug dogs will be utilized at Columbus High and Columbus Middle schools when school resumes Jan.  9. 

Superintendent Paul Hillyer said the move is in reaction to learning about the amount of drug use in the county.  Hillyer said he learned during a local law enforcement presentation Platte County has the highest rate of drug use per capita of any county in the state. 

In an effort to create the safest, drug-free environment for students, Hillyer and the school board decided to use drug dogs at the high school and middle school.  The animals will be brought into the schools by a K-9 force for random, unannounced visits after the holiday break.  Lockers and the buildings will be searched. 

"We've been thinking about it all year.  It did start off when we had a presentation from law enforcement and the drug use in the county," Hillyer said, adding that there are concerns for the city as a whole over drug use and it needs to be taken seriously. 

Hillyer said the main reason the drug dogs will be utilized is "to make sure we have a safe environment for kids.  We aren't a law enforcement agency or doing the job of the police.  But when kids come through the doors we want them to be safe."

The school district has a zero tolerance policy for drug use.  Any student caught with drugs in his or her possession or who is found under the influence is turned over to police. 

Hillyer said the majority of CPS students do not use drugs, but there have been incidences this school year. 

"We do know that there are kids who are using drugs.  We have had two or three who we've caught," Hillyer said. 

Before making the decision to utilize drug dogs, Hillyer said a survey was conducted of 15 other greater Nebraska school districts. 

"Of the 12 responses, all indicated they used drug dogs to check drugs in lockers," Hillyer said.  "After getting that feedback from them, I checked with Lakeview as well, and they have been doing it for some time."

Lakeview Superintendent Kurt Harrison said the use of drug dogs began in his district about seven years ago.  "We do periodical inspections to prove that we don't have drugs in the school and to make the parents and students more comfortable," Harrison said. 

The drug dogs have only been used at Lakeview High School, but Harrison said they have thought of using them in the elementary schools as well. 

At CPS, Hillyer said the district uses breathalyzers on students and also a new drug-detection tool of special wipes and sprays that detects traces of drugs on surfaces.  With the introduction of those tools along with the drug dogs, Hillyer said he hopes the safest possible environment will be created for students. 

"Probably about 95 percent of our kids don't do drugs, and we don't want them in contact with those who do drugs or around drugs," he said.