Pubdate: Sun, 25 Jan 2015 Source: Newsday (NY) Copyright: 2015 Newsday Inc. Contact: http://www.newsday.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/308 Author: Valerie Bauman STUDENTS SCHOOLED ON DANGERS OF DRUG USE Long Island students schooled on dangers of drug use as part of community search for cultural change More than 50 students from eight Long Island schools gathered at Northport High last week for what community members hope will be a cultural change in how kids think and talk about drugs. "It's going to take a long time," said Darryl St. George, a history teacher and adviser for Northport's chapter of Students Against Destructive Decisions. "It's going to take commitment, and it's going to be a gradual change." St. George said this latest effort is focused on students taking the lead. He charged students from Harborfields, Kings Park, Elwood, St. Anthony's, Commack, Brentwood and Half Hollow Hills West on Wednesday with continuing the conversation at their respective schools. "Everyone knows this isn't something that's just going to change" quickly, said Devon Narine-Singh, an 18-year-old senior at Northport who attended. "It's something that you need to put work into. To me, these events are key." One speaker likened it to the decades-long campaign against tobacco. "Smoking used to be a cool thing," said Anthony Rizzuto, executive director of Wantagh-based Families in Support of Treatment. "Cigarette smoking is no longer cool. There has been a cultural shift from something that made you look like you were 'all that,' to 'ew.' The goal is to be able to make it not cool to be the one that's using." St. George, a Northport graduate, shared his story about the loss of his brother Corey, a former Northport student who died of a heroin overdose at age 21. "I think it's important for me to open up in front of the kids," the 32-year-old said Thursday. "I think they need to hear that this is a tragically complex problem, where you're seeing more examples that it is a lethal problem." St. George said he wishes he could have talked to his brother about addiction. "It's important for everyone, even people who haven't been directly affected by this, to . . . really look at the people in their lives and ask themselves if this is affecting them in some way," he said. "Because I didn't. And when I found out my brother was doing heroin, I was floored." - --- MAP posted-by: Matt