Pubdate: Thu, 26 May 2005 Source: Athens News, The (OH) Copyright: 2005, Athens News Contact: http://www.athensnews.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1603 Author: Nick Claussen Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?225 (Students - United States) Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/testing.htm (Drug Testing) LOCAL HIGH-SCHOOL DRUG TESTING PROMPTS MIXED REACTIONS Drug and alcohol testing may be coming soon to Alexander High School, but it already has been a way of life at the Nelsonville-York City School District for the last two years. The Alexander Local School Board is expected to vote at its meeting next month on a new policy to test Alexander High School students for drugs, alcohol and tobacco. Dave Kasler, president of the Alexander Local School Board, said Wednesday that students in athletics and all students who drive to school will be subjected to mandatory and random testing if the policy is approved. A committee made up of community members, administrators, Athens County Sheriff's Office DARE officer Jimmy Childs, teachers and parents came up with the drug-testing policy, according to Kasler. The committee looked at drug-testing policies already in place at Nelsonville-York, Meigs and Wellston high schools, along with a sample policy supplied by the Ohio School Boards Association, Kasler said. "We took bits and pieces from the other policies," he said. The policy is not intended to punish students who use alcohol, drugs or tobacco, Kasler stressed. "Our real goal is prevention and counseling," he said. Students will be punished after multiple violations, while also receiving counseling, he explained. "What we've been told from the districts that we have spoken to is that (student drug testing) does make a big difference," Kasler said. Alexander Supt. Bob Bray said last week that while he expects the drug- and alcohol-testing program to be controversial, the school district has good reasons for the testing. If the policy is approved, he added, student athletes will be tested because they represent the school and because the district does not want them to be hurt while they're involved in practices or games while under the influence of drugs or alcohol. The district considers it a privilege to drive to school, so all of the students who do so would be subjected to testing, Bray said. He added that district officials want students to be sober and drug-free if they are driving to school. Megan Moseley, who will be president of the Alexander High School Student Council during the 2005-2006 school year, said that many students support the drug testing, but many oppose it, too. "That's a really bold decision that they are making," Moseley said. She thinks the drug testing policy is a good idea for student-athletes, because athletics are related to the school. "They have every right to do that," Moseley said, adding that she plays softball. As for drug testing for students who drive to school, Moseley said she doesn't think that's such a good idea. The school is a public school and students should be able to park without being subject to drug testing, Moseley said. "I haven't heard one good thing about the parking situation," she added. While drugs and alcohol are not a big problem at Alexander, they are present at the school just as they are at every school, according to Moseley. "I don't think it's different from any other school," she said. Moseley had heard about drug testing at Nelsonville-York High School and said she "saw it coming" that Alexander would soon start testing its athletes. The Athens City School District does not have a drug-testing policy, and school Supt. Carl Martin said Wednesday that the school board members have not discussed implementing a policy. According to an article in The Christian Science Monitor, the U.S. Supreme Court in 2002 upheld a public school's right to drug test students in extracurricular activities. Supporters of student drug testing say it's an effective way to keep high-school students off drugs and fight the nation's drug problem. Opponents of drug testing, though, argue that the tests have not been proven to reduce drug use and that they violate students' privacy rights. Opponents also argue that the testing calls for searching the students without probable cause and undermines the teacher-student relationship that can often guide students away from drugs and alcohol. Gary Daniels, litigation coordinator for the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Ohio, said Wednesday that the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that schools can get away with drug testing of students under certain circumstances, such as for student in athletics or extra-curricular activities. "The ACLU... does not agree with that analysis of the Fourth Amendment and students' rights," Daniels said. "We think it totally turns on its head the time-honored American legal tradition of being innocent until proven guilty." Americans would not want adults to be subjected to random drug testing, but for some reason they think it's perfectly acceptable to test high-school students, Daniels said. "The most effective way (to fight the drug testing) is for students and parents to register objections with the school board," Daniels said. He added that student drug testing is a bad idea for several reasons and that hopefully students and parents will register their objections to the new policy. AT NELSONVILLE-YORK High School, drug, alcohol and tobacco testing has been a weekly routine for the last two years. "We just completed the second year. The kids are pretty much in line," said Principal Mick McClelland. The Nelsonville-York Middle School also performs drug testing, he added. "I honestly believe it has changed some kids' lives," McClelland said. "And if it only changes one, it is worth it." During the 2004-2005 school year, Nelsonville-York High School performed 520 random drug tests, McClelland said. Of those tests, 24 were positive, he confirmed. All students in sports, band and choir are tested, McClelland said. Once students' names are on the list once for sports, band or choir, they are always on the list for drug testing even if they are no longer involved in the activities, he said. Parents can have their children's names taken off the list, however, if they are no longer involved in the activities, McClelland said. Parents also can have their children's names added to the drug-testing list if they wish, even if the children are not in sports, band or choir. At the beginning of every sports season, every athlete involved with the sport is tested, McClelland said. And during the first week of school, every student in band and choir is tested. After the initial tests, the drug-testing company, which is based in Columbus, selects names randomly, and those students are pulled out of class for the urine tests, McClelland said. He usually tests between 12 and 18 students each week, and no one knows who will be tested until McClelland gets the list of names. The samples are always split in half in case there is a question about the testing, he added. Students could get tested two weeks in a row, and during the first year, one students was chosen randomly for testing five out of the first six weeks, McClelland said. The first time a student is found positive, the drug-testing company notifies the student's parents and McClelland. The students then have to enter a counseling program (even if it's for only one session, as decided by the counselor), and the student is subjected to mandatory testing the next three weeks, according to McClelland. The second time a student is found positive, the student has to receive more counseling and drug tests, and the student is suspended from sports, band or choir for four weeks. "Now the teacher or the coach knows about it," McClelland said. If the student is in band or choir, the student's grade is not affected. The students can take part in the sports, band and choir practices, but cannot take part in games or performances during the suspensions. After the third positive, the students are suspended from sports, band or choir for a full calendar year, and after a fourth positive the students are banned from sports, band or choir for the entire time they are students at Nelsonville-York High School, McClelland said. "I've had students hit every level," McClelland confirmed. Marijuana has been the main drug found in the testing so far, although some prescription medications that were not prescribed to the students were also found in the testing, he said. The testing looks for drugs, alcohol and tobacco, he added. "I can guarantee you that it has changed some of the kids here," he said. Several students used to do rub (a type of chewing tobacco), but thanks to the drug testing the students stopped, McClelland said. He added that he has heard from some families who told him they like the drug testing. "It's a good program," he said. Jordan Bateman, president of the Nelsonville-York High School Student Council, said she believes the drug testing has made a difference at the school. Drugs and alcohol were not a big problem with students in sports, band and choir, she said, but the testing has cut down on the students in these activities who do drugs or alcohol. She is an athlete and she does not mind being tested, she said. The only problem Bateman sees with the testing is that it does not go far enough. She would like to see testing for students besides just those in sports, band and choir. - --- MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom