Pubdate: Thu, 05 Jan 2006
Source: Boston Globe (MA)
Copyright: 2006 Globe Newspaper Company
Contact:  http://www.boston.com/globe/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/52
Author: Maria  Sacchetti, Globe Staff
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/testing.htm (Drug Test)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/youth.htm (Youth)

NEW BEDFORD OFFERS YOUTH DRUG-TESTING  PLAN

Challenge Involves Getting Volunteers

NEW BEDFORD -- City officials, after a two-year battle, have won 
approval for what is believed to be the state's first program to 
randomly test students for drugs. Now they face another challenge: 
persuading parents to sign their children up for it.

Last month, New Bedford's School Committee cleared the way for drug 
testing in the schools, and administrators plan to begin testing in 
March. But the program is voluntary, so city officials are planning 
incentives to bolster participation.

Parents in this working-class port of 100,000 face a difficult 
decision, one that more and more families confront as the federal 
government spends millions  to push drug testing in schools.

This month, parents of the roughly 7,000 New Bedford students in 
grades 6 through 12 will receive letters asking them if they wish to 
enroll their children in the program. If the parents agree, their 
children will be included  in a lottery and could be tested for drugs 
at any time.

Some New Bedford parents say it's a family matter, and they object to 
having children as young as sixth-graders taken out of class to have 
a cotton swab placed in their mouth. Others support the testing, 
saying it may be the best way  to catch a problem that often starts 
during adolescence. Though focus groups organized by a city advisory 
board suggest that most parents support the program, some parents 
expressed uneasiness and worry that by enrolling their children they 
are sending a message that they do not trust them. Students who test 
positive will not be reported to the school or the police. Instead, a 
private counselor will contact them and their parents to help 
address  the issue.

Kim Silva's 16-year-old son has straight As, plays sports, and is a 
diabetic; she said she does not think he's a drug user. Her daughter, 
who is 10, will not  be eligible for the program until next year, but 
Silva said she is leaning  toward signing them up.

"What is it going to hurt?" she said. "I'd rather know. It would make 
them think twice."

Still, others resist. "I don't agree with it," said Susan Furtado, 
whose son recently graduated and who is guardian of a foster child at 
the high school. "I  think it's the parents' responsibility, not the 
school system. They're there to  teach."

According to a 2003 survey, about half of New Bedford's high school 
students had recently used alcohol, and 29 percent had recently 
smoked marijuana, similar  to state averages.

Lieutenant Governor Kerry Healey is backing the New Bedford program 
and said the city's decision to start drug testing could be a model 
for other communities.

"I think you can never impose a drug-testing program from the top 
down," Healey said. "It genuinely has to be a recognized need and 
desire from the community."

The state Department of Education does not track drug testing in 
schools, but state and city officials say that New Bedford is the 
first to start random drug  testing and that there is growing 
interest elsewhere. Haverhill and Salem have  each established a task 
force to study drug testing in schools. Other school  systems, such 
as Assabet Valley Regional Technical High School in 
Marlborough,  only test students who are suspected of using drugs. In 
New Bedford, students who are enrolled in the program could be tested 
at any time, said Carl J. Alves, coordinator of the city's  drug-free 
student assistance program, which is in charge of overseeing 
the  initiative. If their number is pulled in a computer-generated 
lottery, students will get a note telling them to report to a 
location, which could change with each test. There they will be asked 
to bite down on a swab attached to a stick resembling a toothbrush.

Results of the saliva sample, which will be tested for drugs 
including marijuana and opiates, should be available to parents 
within 48 hours. The city will hire another firm to offer initial 
counseling to students who test positive. To keep the test results 
confidential, New Bedford will hire a private company to carry out 
the testing primarily at each middle school and the two  high 
schools. Alves said he expects at least 700 students, about 10 
percent of the  enr ollment in grades 6 to 12, to sign up over the 
next 12 months. The program, which will be paid for through federal 
grants of up to  $500,000 over three years, can cover the cost of 
1,400 tests a year.

Alves said student test results will be kept at the private firm, 
which will provide the city with statistics about the outcomes, but 
not names. Joy Nightingale, 16, an honors student, said she plans to 
talk her parents into signing her up, especially if the school offers 
discounts to stores. She said that she does not use drugs, but that 
many students do. Students "talk about getting stoned," she said. 
"They talk about their 'trips' because they think it's funny. But 
when you think about what they're doing to their bodies, it's far less funny."

At the skating rink next to New Bedford High School last week, some 
parents, including a city narcotics detective, said they support the 
program, but for other people's children.

"I'm probably not going to sign my kid up," said Sergeant Victor 
Mendes of the New Bedford police, who occasionally ransacks his son's 
dresser drawers to send the message that his son should not be hiding 
anything. "I don't think it  should be done for everybody."

The question of whether to test is causing some family conflicts. 
Terrel Parent, 15, a high school sophomore, opposes testing. But his 
mother, Valerie, is interested. "I trust my kid, but I think kids 
should know that they may be chosen randomly," she said.

In 2002, the US Supreme Court narrowly upheld the constitutionality 
of random drug testing of students in extracurricular activities, 
fueling the recent federal push for more testing. Over the past two 
years, federal dollars for drug  testing have more than tripled, to 
$7 million, and so have the number of schools  in the program.

In 2005, 30 school systems and 300 schools won the grants to test 
students. The school systems are a small percentage of the thousands 
in the nation, but federal officials predict that testing will become 
more widespread. The American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts 
and others have questioned the accuracy of the testing and whether 
students' rights might be violated. "The program now still raises a 
lot of questions," said a staff lawyer, Sarah Wunsch. "It's voluntary 
for the parents, but it doesn't sound voluntary for the kids."
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MAP posted-by: Beth Wehrman