MORE TEXAS STUDENTS ARE GETTING IN TROUBLE FOR DRUGS

Increase in Discipline for Possession, Sales Not Pegged to Just One
Cause, Educators Say

More students in North Texas -- and across the state -- are being
disciplined for having used, sold or possessed drugs or controlled
substances on campuses, according to information released by the state.

In the Texas Education Agency region that includes Dallas, Collin and
Rockwall counties, the number of incidents in which students were
disciplined for drug infractions rose 13 percent between 2005-06 and
2006-07, according to data compiled by the TEA.

And in the TEA region that includes Denton, Tarrant and Wise
counties, the number of incidents rose 50 percent over the same
period. the TEA will compile data for the current school year by December.

Statewide, the number of reported nonfelony incidents increased 10
percent over the same period. Felony-level offenses, such as heroin
possession, jumped 38 percent statewide, an increase officials
speculated was due at least in part to the spread of cheese heroin in
Dallas-area schools.

The figures, which the TEA got from school districts, include any
drug-related activity that resulted in discipline, from suspensions
to arrests. The data include misdemeanors and felonies but don't
reveal which drugs were involved.

Reports of increasing student drug use create hard decisions for
school districts. Some have approved random drug testing as part of
an overall plan to fight student drug use, but others have been
reluctant because of the cost.

State and local educators say they aren't sure why the increase
occurred but suggested several reasons, including stepped-up
enforcement, better drug-awareness programs and an actual increase in drug use.

Changing Focus

TEA spokeswoman DeEtta Culbertson said school districts are reporting
that students are bringing in more prescription drugs. A study
released last year by the White House found that teens nationwide are
turning away from traditional illicit drugs, such as marijuana, and
abusing over-the-counter and prescription medicines.

Ms. Culbertson said schools also are clamping down on students
involved with drugs and are being more punitive.

Drug infractions can lead to a range of punishments, including
suspension, placement in a disciplinary alternative school and
referral to a county juvenile department. The severity of the
punishment depends on the drug, and, in some cases, the amount. For
example, kids caught with drugs punishable as a felony, such as
heroin, ecstasy and cocaine, face mandatory expulsion.

The Fort Worth school system had the biggest increase in reported
incidents among large districts, with the numbers nearly tripling
from 132 to 381 from 2005-06 to 2006-07. In the Houston school
district, the state's largest, reported incidents dropped from 1,074 to 914.

Administrators in Fort Worth couldn't explain the rise.

"We can't attribute it to anything other than we caught more people,"
said Clint Bond, Fort Worth school district spokesman. "There are
spikes in different categories from year to year. I can't say there's
an increase in drug use but just that we caught more people."

The state data are not broken down by type of drug or whether the
student was selling, using or dealing it. Mr. Bond said marijuana is
the biggest problem in his 79,000-student district. He said he's
certain his district will be monitoring the numbers for this school
year, looking for trends.

'Cheese' Reports

In the Dallas Independent School District, incidents involving
controlled substances and drugs rose 9 percent, from 739 in 2005-06
to 802 in 2006-07. In addition, drug felonies nearly quadrupled,
surging from 61 to 236.

Dallas administrators say they expected a big increase in felony
reports after "cheese" heroin swept through several campuses last
school year. When the drug showed up at some northwest Dallas
schools, district officials launched a campaign to educate parents,
students and staff members on the dangers of cheese, a mix of black
tar heroin and crushed nighttime cold tablets.

DISD police have noticed a sizable drop in arrests for cheese in the
159,000-student district. A recent report showed that only 15
students were arrested for the drug this school year through
November, down from 71 during the same period last year.

DISD Police Chief John Blackburn said the increase in nonfelony drug
incidents between 2005-06 and 2006-07 is not much of a fluctuation in
a district the size of Dallas, and suggested it was the result of
heightened public awareness.

"More and more people are aware and on the lookout for drugs," Chief
Blackburn said.

But awareness programs can swing drug numbers either way. For
example, the Lancaster school district attributes a substantial
decrease in drug-related incidents to outreach programs, such as a
junior police academy and a tip line.

Debbie Meripolski, executive director of the Greater Dallas Council
on Alcohol and Drug Abuse, said it's hard to know why some districts
had increases in drug incidents.

"It could be that they're just going up, or because they're reported
more," Ms. Meripolski said. "We can't really say for sure."