Pubdate: Tue, 07 Jul 2009 Source: Victoria Times-Colonist (CN BC) Copyright: 2009 Times Colonist Contact: http://www2.canada.com/victoriatimescolonist/letters.html Website: http://www.timescolonist.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/481 Note: From Port St. Lucie News, Florida Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/dare.htm (D.A.R.E.) THE PROBLEM WITH DARE Port St. Lucie News The Drug Abuse Resistance Education program, or DARE, taught in the public schools by law-enforcement officers is popular. DARE has been around a long time and has become part of the school experience. The St. Lucie County school district had to have a good reason to consider eliminating the DARE program. That reason is simple. Numerous studies have determined DARE is ineffective in reducing drug and alcohol use and, according to some studies, might even be detrimental. The program has been criticized by the U.S. Government Accountability Office, the National Academy of Sciences and the U.S. Surgeon General. Federal grants cannot be used for DARE because of its lack of success. That does not mean DARE is completely without merit. Its primary benefit appears to be the interaction and relationships between the officers and the students. DARE would be replaced with a program called Too Good for Drugs, taught by substance abuse prevention specialists. Every program in the school district should be evaluated periodically to determine if it is achieving its desired goals. If one doesn't seem to be working, it should be replaced. That's what the district is doing with DARE. The school district and the community at large want schoolchildren to avoid drugs and gangs and violence. If new programs don't work, they, too, should be replaced until greater and more lasting successes are found. Changing or eliminating an established program is rarely easy in a major organization such as the school district. But, if anything, this change may be overdue. Port St. Lucie News, Florida - --- MAP posted-by: Larry Seguin