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." - --- MAP posted-by: Beth Wehrman