CABIN WINDOW - DRUG TESTS

Schools Need To Do Them

It's sad that the Conway School District has to consider random drug
testing for its students in extracurricular activities, but that's the
world we live in.

Schools have to take an active role in policing the habits of its
students, and for many students that means drugs. Requiring random
drug tests for students to take part in any activity from athletics to
French club is a way to ensure the safety of students, teachers and
others on campus.

Most people think first of athletics when drug testing of students is
mentioned, but it must pertain to individuals taking part in any
extracurricular activity.

The board of education was receptive of the idea, which is still in
the formative stage with parents, students and school personnel being
able to provide feedback on what approach, if any, the district should
take with drug testing.

Validation of the need for such a policy can be found in the results
of a survey during the last school year that showed 20.6 percent of
juniors and 22.3 percent of seniors would get drunk or use drugs
nearly every weekend or more frequently. Another 18.3 percent of
juniors and 21.4 percent of the seniors used drugs occasionally, most
of them only a few times a year.

The key to helping students stay away from drugs is not testing, but
education. Young people, especially the youngest people in the school
district, must be taught the dangers of drugs and alcohol. Providing
them with this information in elementary school can make it easier for
them to see the dangers as they are faced with the substances as they
reach middle school and high school. And they will face them. There is
no question.

Another advantage for the drug testing of students in extracurricular
activities is it gives them another reason to say no when they find
themselves in one of these situations. When the student can say he
does not want to jeopardize his position on a team or in a club, it
can lessen the intense peer pressure that is always there.

Random testing will not eliminate drugs from schools, but is one step
in accomplishing the goal. The Conway School District needs to
investigate the issue and strongly consider it. It benefits the students.