DRUG INCIDENT AT MIDDLE SCHOOL RAISES AWARENESS, EYEBROWS

Events Trigger West Bend To Start AODA Coalition

A 12-year-old sprung a nickname for an illegal drug Thursday neither
Badger Middle School's principal nor two law enforcement officers
knew.

It was all the more reason, after three students at the school were
caught with marijuana last week, Principal Ted Neitzke deemed it time
to get the word out to parents and students about the dangers of
drugs and alcohol, and ways to handle them.

About 25 parents attended Neitzke's hour-long informational session
Thursday that included tips on talking to children about drugs and
how to remove them from dangerous situations.

Parents gasped at some of the statistics and stories Neitzke
presented, much from a training session by the California Drug Task
Force. He described how three high schoolers once huffed propane to
get high. One then decided to smoke and lit a cigarette. Two died in
the explosion.

A similarly dangerous huffing incident occurred in Hartford a few
years ago in which three teens were badly burned inside a car after
huffing cans of air freshener and then attempting to smoke. Police
liaison officer Jim Frank uses that story as a teaching tool.

Janine Loveland, mother of a seventh-grader, liked the information
presented, but was "furious" by the end.

She heard no consequences for the students involved.

"The evidence is there. Kids will repeat if it's a slap on the
hands," she said.

"There are significant consequences," Neitzke said.

Though he couldn't legally talk about the three specific students
involved, policy calls for a three-day suspension for being caught
with marijuana and expulsion for dealing the drug.

Loveland calls for something stiffer.

"These are illegal drugs that were found in the school and there's no
zero-tolerance policy," she said.

That, Neitzke said, is out of his hands.

"It's a board decision," he said.

He suggested one course of action for parents.

"You want to do something about it? Call your alderman and have (Old)
Settler's Park destroyed," he said.

Old Settler's Park in downtown West Bend is a common teen
hangout.

On the topic of how to handle drugs with their children, Neitzke
provided tips on how to stay informed. Regardless if they think their
children are listening, have that talk, he said.

"Don't shy away from these hard conversations," he said, "because
they hear it."

He reminded parents of the immensely powerful influence they have on
their children.

"You are the one person in the world they trusted since birth," he
said.

Neitzke remembers asking his own mother if she ever tried marijuana.
She said yes, which shocked her teen son.

He advised parents try to have their homes as the favorite hangout
places.

"Be the house with 55 frozen pizzas and Mountain Dew," he said. "Your
ear is to the ground."

Parents themselves got a sobering education on drugs. Ecstasy pills,
Neitzke said, have popular logos like the Playboy bunny, Lacoste
alligator, peace signs and hundreds more. The pills also come in
various bright colors.

When it comes to alcohol, Neitzke said, Wisconsin blows the curve on
statistics for underage consumption. Part of that is local culture.

"The idea of a six pack and a pizza is not uncommon in Wisconsin,"
he said.

Neitzke's training allows him, with just a flashlight and a watch, to
be able to tell if people are under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

He demonstrated on a parent what a person's eyes show. Certain
twitches or sizes of pupils - uncontrollable when under the influence
of drugs - will instantly give someone away, he said.

For parents, home drug tests cost $11. That might be a better option
than taking children to a doctor, where even minors don't have to
legally share test results with their parents.

"They have rights," he said.

Neitzke gave similar presentations to seventh-graders on Thursday. By
Easter, he plans to have covered the sixth- and eighth-graders as
well, he said.

At a glance

AODA program forming

Badger's drug incident, a drinking-and-driving crash that killed five
people in 2005 and other problems triggered an effort for West Bend
to get an alcohol and other drug abuse (AODA) prevention coalition.

Kewaskum, Hartford and Germantown each have one, but West Bend always
hooked into the county program.

No more. Danielle Vollendorf, the chemical abuse resistance education
(CARE) coordinator for the West Bend School District, is starting
one.

"There's a need in this community. I'm sure there are people out
there who would like to help out," Vollendorf said.

The group does things like making sure people 21 and older wear
wristbands at area festivals to prevent underage drinking, setting up
free soda for designated drivers at the county fair and doing
programs in schools on prevention and education.