SCHOOL BOARD WANTS KIDS TO JUST SAY NO

Trustee Touts Drug Prevention Program

The Vancouver School Board wants to expand a fledgling drug and
alcohol abuse prevention program, a pilot project that began at Sir
Charles Tupper and Kitsilano secondary schools in 2006/07.

Called SACY--the School-Age Children and Youth substance abuse
prevention program--it's since expanded to seven schools, but
officials envision it being implemented across the district. The
program is aimed at prevention, delaying teens' use of illegal
substances and reducing drug and alcohol use for those already
immersed in the culture by focusing on four areas: youth, parents,
teacher training and classroom curriculum, and policy.

School board chairman Clarence Hansen said the board needs financial
support from the provincial and federal governments to help cover the
annual $2 million cost. The program is featured at a City of
Vancouver four pillars drug strategy meeting next week that's focused
on one of the pillars--prevention. "It's always been there, but never
as a major focus of the four pillars," Hansen said. "I think the fact
they're willing to listen to us means that we now truly do have four
pillars and the focus on this is going to make this a worthwhile enterprise."

Hansen calls the SACY program unique, partly because of its focus on
both students and their families. "There's nothing in Canada to
compare with what's being done in Vancouver," he said. "My concern is
that there's a drug culture out there and as good as kids are, they
need to be exposed to what is out there and how they can make choices
about what's going to be tempting."

One of the program goals involves forming relationships with teens,
particularly at-risk ones. SACY clubs are created to give students a
voice to talk to adults about drug and alcohol issues, according to
project coordinator Art Steinmann. Teens can also participate in
community service activities, such as handing out food to addicts.
"We don't believe all kids are using drugs, but we also don't believe
none are," Steinmann said.

Parents learn to communicate with and stay connected to their kids
through workshops. A six-week series for Spanish-speaking parents is
scheduled for April. Eight teachers at the Grade 6 level, meanwhile,
are working with the Centre for Addictions Research B.C. to test out
a series of lessons as part of the teacher training and curriculum
development portion of SACY. Eventually, it's hoped the lessons will
target students between Grade 6 and 12.

The final element of SACY deals with policy. A committee looked at
how students are handled if they show up at school drunk or stoned.
Typically, they were suspended for three days. A new approach sees
teens being taken off school grounds where youth workers help them
focus on issues such as self-awareness and how substance abuse
affects their lives.

Although the program started with secondary schools, the goal is to
include feeder elementary schools, and ultimately to create a
kindergarten to Grade 12 comprehensive program. Steinmann maintains
the $2 million cost of an expanded program is worth it since it would
reach close to 60,000 students.