TULIA ISD TO FIGHT DRUG-TEST RULING

TULIA - The Tulia school district intends to appeal a decision by an
Amarillo judge who ruled that the district's student drug-testing
policy is unconstitutional.

Six of the school board's seven members attended an early morning
meeting Tuesday and voted unanimously to appeal the decision by U.S.
District Judge Mary Lou Robinson to the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of
Appeals, said Supt. Mike Vinyard.

Hollister Gardner was a student at Tulia High School when he sued the
school district for implementing a random drug-testing policy in
January 1997. The tests apply to students in grades 7-12 who wish to
participate in extracurricular activities.

Robinson ruled last week in favor of Gardner, who had claimed the
random testing violated the Fourth Amendment, which protects against
unreasonable searches and seizures.

Robinson's ruling, filed in U.S. District Court in Amarillo, states,
''This court concludes that the mandatory random, suspicionless
drug-testing program for all students participating in
extracurricular activities at Tulia I.S.D. is violative of the Fourth
Amendment.''

Gardner, now 21 and a senior at Angelo State University in San
Angelo, could not be reached for comment Tuesday. He said last week
that he doesn't believe Robinson's ruling will be overturned in the
appeals process.

''We've won the court case in the constitutional sense,'' he said.
''They're not going to be able to drug test anymore.''

The school district postponed a drug screening it had planned for
later this week, Vinyard said Tuesday.

''I'm pleased that they decided to appeal the case,'' he said of the
school board. ''I've had a number of parents express to me their hope
that we would appeal the case and keep the program going.''

At last count, the drug-testing program included 645 students, he
said, or about 91 percent of the eligible student body.

The district is seeing fewer positive drug tests each year, Vinyard said.

''The percentage is decreasing, and that shows me the program is
having its desired effect,'' he said.

The drug screenings do not test for alcohol or tobacco, Vinyard said.
The screenings test for 10 other drugs, including marijuana,
methamphetamine and cocaine, he said.

Students who test positive can either submit to weekly drug
screenings and counseling or take a suspension from extracurricular
activities for a semester. A second-time offense results in a
suspension from extracurricular activities for the remainder of the
school year, Vinyard said.

A third-time offense results in suspension from extracurricular
activities for the remainder of the current year and the next school
year, counseling and additional drug screenings, Vinyard said.

He said one student has tested positive three times.

Gardner's father, Gary, was a school board member when his son
contested the drug-testing policy. Gary Gardner was the only school
board member who did not vote for the policy.

Hollister Gardner's aunt and uncle also filed suit against the school
district on behalf of their two children, Molly, now a senior, and
Colby, now a sophomore. Their claims were included in Friday's ruling.

Robinson ruled that the school board acted in good faith when
implementing the policy.

''Finally, the court finds that each of the school board members
acted in good faith and did not act from corrupt motives in adopting
the drug-testing program,'' the ruling said.

A similar case is pending in nearby Lockney, where one parent has
filed suit against the school district for randomly drug testing
students.