SCHOOLS GOING TO THE DOGS?

Cowichan school trustees may consider letting the RCMP police dog randomly
patrol schools in search of illicit drugs.

Superintendent Brian Hoole is scheduled to make a report to the school
board tonight, launching trustees into a debate about using Gator - North
Cowichan/Duncan RCMP's tracking dog - to keep lockers contraband free.

But if trustees share the view of some principals and their students, the
debate will be a short one.

Almost everyone, it seems, thinks using the sniffer dog is a good idea.

"I just think if they're stupid enough to bring (drugs) to school then why
should they hide it?" asked Erin Bower, student council president at
Cowichan Secondary.

"I totally think it's a good idea. It's school; you're supposed to be there
to learn. It's (drug use) just not necessary and it bothers me because a
lot of people think it is."

Const. Mike Field, the RCMP's school liaison officer for the Cowichan
Valley, asked the board in January to consider using Gator in middle and
secondary schools, after parents and administrators pitched the idea to him.

The request was denied after a closed-door meeting Jan. 24, because some
trustees were concernerd about illegal searches and seizures.

But the superintendent and the constable recently met again and Hoole
suggested the board re-open debate.

The School Act allows administrators to search lockers and confiscate
illegal items, but as soon as police are called a search warrant must be
obtained.

"Under the School Act (if there's) reasonable suspicion (administrators)
can go in," Field said. "Once they call us in they become our agent, then
at that point we have to get a search warrant."

Natalie Ward, a Grade 12 student at Cowichan Secondary, knows of students
who use drugs but denies it is a problem at her school.

"I don't know if it's a major problem, but it definitely is happening," she
said.

School District policy dictates that students found under the influence or
in possession of alcohol or illegal drugs will be punished via suspension.

A first offence warrants a maximum five-day suspension. The penalty
increases to 15 school days for a second offence and the student could be
transferred to a different school.

For multiple offences a student can be suspended for the remainder of the
school year and re-admission will only be granted once the board of
trustees receives assurance the offender is receiving treatment from a
"recognized substance abuse agency."

Students suspected of trafficking must be immediately referred to the RCMP.

The penalties apply to every student and are enforceable any time parents
or guardians would reasonably expect their kids to be under the
jurisdiction of the school district.

"This includes on the way to and on the way home from school, times when
the student may have left the school property, at school dances, on field
trips, or as a spectator in attendance at or a participant in an
extra-curricular activity," the policy states.

Such sweeping penalties may seem to provide ample deterrence, but they
haven't stopped kids from breaking the rules. Some principals believe more
deterrence is both necessary and appropriate.

"I think anything we can do to deal with the problem that surfaces from
time to time in the schools is good news," said Maureen McPherson,
principal of Chemainus Secondary. "Anything that can be done to ensure
we're keeping a safe atmosphere for learning is a constructive move."

Al MacLeod of Frances Kelsey also likes the idea of using Gator and thinks
it would help drug users avoid long-term addictions.

"We were told by a number of agencies in the community the use of drugs and
the quantity of drugs is at a peak right now and anything we can do to draw
people's attention to the affects it has on the ability to learn is
worthwhile," said the principal.

"It's not a case of just doing it for the result of punishing people, but
identifying students who might be heading toward serious dependencies. That
would be the thrust of it."