Centre students concerned about drug abuse
By ROWENA PLETT
Reporter / photographer
Tad Remy and Rachel Davis, freshmen at Centre High School, appeared before the district board of education Monday to express concerns about what they see as a "growing problem" with use of illicit drugs by students.
They distributed copies of a written report they had authored.
"Since the last school year ended," they wrote, "we have noticed more and more people in the freshmen class that have become withdrawn and they find no enjoyment in pursuits they used to care about.
"If these individuals who have changed in the last year have been getting worse grades and goof around in class, it has all stemmed down from the upperclassmen.
"While the growing number of younger students, mainly the underclassmen, using substances has increased, it also dramatically raises the risk of younger students to start using these things later in life. The number of high schoolers using these substances has grown at epidemic proportions and nothing is being done."
Remy said the problem is affecting his relationship with his friends. Davis said older students are influencing younger students down through the junior high level.
Remy said he believed that nothing but a harsher school policy on drugs can stop it. He said the DARE program was OK but it seemed to work only for those from good backgrounds with high morals and values, who didn't need it.
Current school policy provides the following penalties for drug and alcohol use on school property: 1) first offense — short term suspension and suspensions from all student activities for not less than one month; 2) second offense — long term suspension and suspension from all activities for not less than one semester or four months. A student placed on long term suspension may be readmitted on a probability status if the student agrees to complete a drug and alcohol rehabilitation program; 3) third offense — expulsion from the school for the remainder of the school year and suspension from participation in and attendance at all school activities for the year. An expelled student may be readmitted only if the student has completed a drug and alcohol education and rehabilitation program.
Davis and Remy pointed out several situations in the school where they were aware of students using illicit drugs. They said users douse themselves in cologne to disguise the smell of drugs and often can be seen huddled together in the hallway.
Remy and Davis recommended that the board amend school policy to at least double the amount of suspension and/or expulsion.
"We feel that the first offense should be an immediate suspension from all extra-curricular activities for the entire year, one week's worth of after-school detentions, no questions asked. The proper law authorities will be notified the very day of the first offense.
"The second offense is the same as the first offense, only doubled. In addition, it is an automatic suspension of no less than one nine-weeks. On the third offense, it is an immediate and indefinite expulsion and automatic admittance into a mandatory rehabilitation program recommended by higher authorities.
"If you think this is harsh, then you have no idea how bad the problem is. The bottom line is a more rigid and harsher policy is all that will help to cure this problem."
They urged people to get involved and stand up against the problem because "if you do not do anything about the problem, nothing will be done at all and it will continue to spread like wildfire."
Board member Clark Davis suggested that more frequent use of a drug dog by local law enforcement and more training of teachers in detecting drug use could be helpful.
Principal Neal Weltha said the K-9 dog isn't always available when needed.
Superintendent Demitry Evancho said a workshop regarding student drug and alcohol use will be conducted Aug. 13, the earliest date available, for all school personnel. He said the eight-hour program will include site council members, board of education members, and interested parents.
Board president Ronnie Carlson asked the students if they saw an increase in alcohol or drugs or both. Remy said alcohol use remains steady but drug use has increased.
In response to a question from board member Jennifer Kassebaum, Weltha said one student had been suspended during the current year for drug policy violations.
Davis wondered if a harsher penalty would work. Weltha said more training for school personnel might allow for harsher penalties. He cited Herington school district as an example. He said their school personnel underwent extensive training. Students can be given sobriety tests if they are suspected. Then Kansas Highway Patrol officers are brought in to give a second test.
Weltha cited a school policy which states that if a student leaves a school event, the student has to have a teacher's permission to come back. He said the policy hasn't been enforced and measures could be taken to enforce it.
"We would rather help students than punish them," he said, "but maybe harsher rules would shock some sense into them."
Counselor Lacy Wallace said low grades aren't necessarily a measure of suspicious activity. He said most freshmen students with poor grades have a lower GPA to begin with. Weltha noted that the transition from junior high to senior high sometimes causes grades to slip.
"The kids want something to happen," Wallace said. "They want harsh rules."
Kassebaum contended that penalties could be enhanced but more will have to be done to make the punishment effective. She suggested some kind of peer mediation.
Davis said the juvenile justice system in Marion County has failed. He said the current district judge is lax in handing down penalties. He suggested the judge be voted out of office. Davis is a Lutheran pastor at Tampa.
"We've failed miserably," concurred Evancho, who is a member of the juvenile justice board. "More people are perpetrating crimes."
"Setting a penalty is easy," Kassebaum said. "Enforcement is the tough part."
Weltha said education of teachers is important: "Most of my teachers would not identify drug abuse."
"You have to know how to prove someone is using drugs," Carlson said.
"You have to have a way to measure that," Davis agreed.
Evancho said the August workshop will address policies and proper procedures to follow, as well as follow-up. He said it will take some time to make changes, noting it takes 60-90 days to implement a revised policy.
Student Remy said drug education needs to be started at a younger age and should be scarry, not funny, like some of the DARE videos try to be.
Clark suggested the board look at other schools' policies and how they have worked for them.
Board member Leona Hajek suggested that it might be useful if a young person who has battled with a drug problem would address students.
Weltha said experts contend that is not a good plan and isn't effective.
Drug testing was discussed. Weltha said under current law, students not in extra-curricular activities can be tested only if their parents request it.
Evancho suggested if a countywide trend could be demonstrated — through the number of court cases in Marion County, for instance, or drug survey results from past to present — more drug testing might be allowed.
Weltha posed this question to the students: "We're asked to solve a whole lot of problems that don't necessarily start in school. What about the parents? How do you get parents involved?"
Remy acknowledged that some parents do contribute to their children's use of drugs or alcohol.
"We don't see a solution to that," he said.
"We appreciate your concern," Carlson told the students. "The types of drugs available nowadays are really serious. It's going to be hard to solve it. We will do what we can."
