Participants in last year s joint P.E.A.C.E. 100 and SSA Provincial Snowmobile Festival that took place in Nipawin on Feb. 27 and 28. After 19 years the P.E.A.C.E. 100 Snowmobile Rally will not take place in Nipawin this year. The Nipawin Elks Lodge hosted the P.E.A.C.E. 100 or Police-Elks Assisting Community Education Snowmobile Rally since 1991. It has been a key aspect of the fundraising efforts by the Saskatchewan Elks Association and Royal Purple for drug awareness education and programs such as D.A.R.E. (Drug Abuse Resistance Education). [continues 407 words]
Last week, Airdrie elementary school students graduated from a program meant to provide the life skills necessary to avoid involvement in drugs, gangs and violence. The DARE (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) program which has not been implemented in Airdrie in close to two decades, made a successful return through a collaborative initiative from the City of Airdrie and RCMP. The Airdrie Community Resource Unit, which was introduced to Airdrie schools in September of 2009, has been facilitating programs with a focus on building healthy relationships between youth and police by providing early intervention and positive interaction. In that regard, the DARE initiative was a natural fit. [continues 351 words]
The first step to protecting young people from the dangers of drugs is education; and area schools are taking that education one step further by daring their Grade 6 students to resist drugs, alcohol and violence. OPP officer Bob Bortolato is currently in the throes of a ten-week classroom study at St. Mary Catholic School and Victoria Cross Public School in Mount Forest. The program is known as D.A.R.E. (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) and sponsored locally by the Mount Forest Optimist Club. [continues 511 words]
One the best ways to prevent substance use and abuse by children is to educate and empower parents. That is the thinking behind a new program that will be rolled out in Camrose this February. "Kids and Drugs: A Parent's Guide to Prevention" is the Alberta adaptation of a national program developed cooperatively by the RCMP and AADAC. "The program is not so much concerned about the drugs that are out there; it is about building relations between parents and kids and building parents' strengths," explains Jan Turnbull, a Success Mentor at Charlie Killam School and member of the Camrose Alcohol and Drug Task Force which is bringing the program to Camrose. [continues 605 words]
RCMP Presentation Focuses On Drug Abuse Information presented at Lewisporte Intermediate on Dec. 3 by Lewisporte RCMP and guest presenters shocked many parents who attended. Corporal Ann Noel of Drug and Organized Crime Services spoke to those in attendance on various drugs in the community and expressed concerns relating to teenagers abusing over the counter and prescription medications. "The teens are gaining access to over the counter pills in stores, homes and at school," she said. "Normally, when we think about drugs we think about Johnny on the street corner selling a bag of marijuana or a bunch of pills, but unfortunately the whole thing is changing. It's our little Sarah or Johnny at home who are jumping into the medicine cabinet." [continues 844 words]
At the beginning of 2009, Dan Prybyski retired from the Midland County Sheriff's Office. He said then that he hoped his experience in the classroom could be put to good use, and it seems a recent approval by county officials means he will still work with kids. At the Dec. 15 Midland County Board of Commissioners meeting, the commissioners approved an agreement with Prybyski, through his business D.J.P.'s Classroom, to teach the Drug Abuse Resistance Education program, or D.A.R.E., for this school year. The agreement term is from Sept. 1, 2009 to May 30, 2010. Prybyski is to be paid $10 per hour for a maximum of 308 hours with mileage reimbursement up to $500. The money will come out of the sheriff's office drug forfeiture funds. [continues 111 words]
THE success of an anti-drugs programme in primary schools will lead to it being extended to secondary schools in 2010. Pupils at Allenton Community Primary School were among the latest youngsters to get the message from former policemen involved in Dare - Drug Abuse Resistance Education. Dave Gilbert is Dare's chief executive and also a former chief inspector with the Nottinghamshire force. He said: "The need for our programmes has never been greater. Dare programmes include teamwork, role-play and discussion of topics including bullying, anti-social behaviour and peer pressure. [continues 396 words]
ONEONTA - The Oneonta Police Department's Drug Abuse Resistance Education program and school-resource officer retired Tuesday, and he may not be replaced until sometime next year. Officer Steve Havens spent part of his last day with Lt. Dennis Nayor teaching children at Riverside Elementary School about bullying. Havens, a 22-year veteran of the department, was the D.A.R.E. officer for the Oneonta City School District for the last five years and school resource officer for the last three years. [continues 441 words]
For 17 years, Sergeant Don Wilson has been teaching the Drug Abuse Resistance Education (DARE) program at Springboro schools and he doesn't plan on stopping any time soon. "I have a lot of fun," Wilson said. "Believe it or not, I've been doing this for 17 years and I still to this day love to come into the classroom." The DARE program at Springboro schools is taught to second, fourth and seventh graders and is entirely taught by Wilson. It covers topics such as peer pressure, sources of peer pressure, drug education and ways to say 'no'. [continues 1379 words]
Ceremony - Fifth-Graders Have Mayor, Police Chief Onboard. Murray - If high school graduation is the seminal moment of teenagers' lives, then D.A.R.E. (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) graduation just might be the equivalent for fifth-graders. On Dec. 17, students at Longview Elementary had their D.A.R.E. graduation, each receiving certificates and new crisp, white D.A.R.E. T-shirts. The ceremony was attended by Murray City Mayor Daniel Snarr, Police Chief Peter Fondaco, D.A.R.E. officer Keith Huber and assistant superintendent Steven Hirasse. [continues 539 words]
The impact Al Torres has had on local elementary students was plain to see during a recent graduation ceremony for some 600 sixth-graders who have completed the Drug Abuse Resistance Education program (D.A.R.E.) under the Santa Maria police officer's watch. His students showed that Torres has gotten through to them by hugging him appreciatively, giving speeches in which they described techniques he has taught them to refuse offers of drugs, and by vowing to remain drug-free. [continues 604 words]
CHEYENNE -- Fourteen percent of elementary students here say they have been around someone who used meth. And nearly 31 percent say they have been around someone who used an illegal drug other than meth. The Cheyenne-Laramie County Meth Initiative surveyed 5,223 third- through sixth-graders last spring in Laramie County School District 1. Eighteen of the district's 27 elementary schools took part. The Meth Initiative teaches the effects of meth and raises awareness of the problem. Coordinator Lisa Scholz shared survey results Monday. [continues 214 words]
PLYMOUTH - The message that Plymouth sixth graders learned during the nine-week course of DARE (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) may be the most important lesson of them all. The formal graduation for this year's class was held at Riverside Intermediate Thursday. The program was launched in Plymouth in 1989. Officer Mark Owen has been the DARE instructor over the last several years. During the graduation ceremony, Owen said, "There are more personal family stories now than ever before." Each of the students in the class was asked to write an essay on what they had learned. A panel then chose 12 of the authors to receive special recognition at the ceremony. [continues 333 words]
Schools Resource Officer (SOR) Joe Duncan has successfully completed the D.A.R.E. training program that was held at Natchez Trace Park at the Pin Oaks Lodge. According to Duncan, the two-week program was one of the most difficult and intense training programs he has ever taken. Although there was no physical training, Duncan states that he had a lot of homework that sometimes kept him up until midnight. He would then have to be back in class the following morning at 8 a.m. [continues 352 words]
With the help of the local RCMP grade five students at Oyama Traditional School have drawn a line in the sand against drinking and drugs. For the past several weeks students at the school have been learning how to use the D.A.R.E. decision making model to say 'no' to illegal substances. The D.A.R.E. curriculum (drug abuse resistance education) gets students talking about alcohol, marijuana and inhalants. It also discusses peer pressure and the role that it can play in leading a person towards making unhealthy or risky personal decisions. [continues 433 words]
Thirteen Aboriginal students now have the tools to stand up against addictions, thanks to a successfully-completed DARE program at Chief Sunrise Education Centre. DARE, which stands for Drug Abuse Resistance Education, is a program used to educate school-aged children about the risks of drugs, alcohol, and other addictions. Taught by the RCMP, the program offers the facts about these vices and provides children with tools that will help them make educated choices when in the face of peer pressure. [continues 384 words]
As you may have heard, due to the financial times we are all currently experiencing, the Drug Abuse Resistance Education (DARE) program has been suspended as a cost-saving measure by Aurora Police. Since the announcement went public, many have asked me if DARE really works. I have heard from those whose opinions I respect say unequivocally that DARE does not work. On the other end of the spectrum, I have heard others declare that the program absolutely works. Unfortunately, there is no scientific method for proving that either side is correct. [continues 576 words]
A few weeks back, I wrote a story called "Is DARE a GREAT loss?" It was in response to the Aurora Police Department canceling Drug Abuse Resistance Education, a program it taught to fifth-graders. There's no lack of support for DARE in the department, but with the city's eight-figure budget deficit, there is a lack of money. The story questioned the value of DARE, an anti-drug program with a spotty record of influencing drug choices. As the U.S. Department of Education spokeswoman I talked to said, "there isn't any credible evidence that the (DARE) program works." [continues 632 words]
The Summit County Sheriff's Office would like to thank Downstairs at Eric's, Windy City Pizza, City Market Breckenridge and Walmart for their continued support and contributions to the Summit County Sheriff's Office D.A.R.E. program. The support and donations from local businesses like these enable this valuable program to continue in local schools. This year the Silverthorne Recreation Center also donated two punch card passes for two students, and the Snowboard Outreach Society (S.O.S.) donated one of two snowboard lesson/ski packages. On behalf of these kids.Thank You! Gracias! [continues 237 words]
Drugs are the root cause of the majority of criminal activity police deal with. "If you take away drugs, you'd eliminate 85 per cent of crime in our society," said Const. Gary O'Brien, Nanaimo RCMP spokesman. Once a person becomes hooked on drugs, they often enter into a life of crime to feed their habit, a criminal lifestyle that can take years to reverse. One of the biggest changes over the past 30 years has been the increased potency of the drugs. [continues 487 words]
