SCHOOL LOCKER SEARCHES A SAD SIGN OF TIMES

Members of the Board of Education are charged with creating and
enforcing policies in public schools. This is a daunting task,
considering the decisions they make affect the daily educational
experience for thousands of students. Each issue, then, merits
cautious consideration, with the well-being of our children serving
as the ultimate goal.

This is especially true today, as the BOE takes on the thorny issue
of allowing school officials to search student lockers "with or
without cause," in addition to the use of drug-sniffing dogs on campus.

As Advertiser writer Loren Moreno reported, this would be a change
from the current policy, which allows officials to search lockers
only when "the health or safety of a person or persons would be
endangered if a search or seizure is not carried out."

Indeed, random locker searches and drug-sniffing dogs don't exactly
contribute to a healthy learning environment. The intended message
may be to not bring contraband to school, but the policy would send
other messages: Students cannot be trusted, and their rights are few.

Unfortunately, it is a sign of the times.

If public school teachers must undergo random drug testing in the
interest of the welfare of our children, it would be difficult to
argue against a more aggressive policy for students. Both are
extremely complicated issues that require a tricky balancing act
between privacy rights and public security. The bottom line is that
one policy cannot justly exist without the other.

That's not to say school officials should be given carte blanche. If
the BOE votes in favor of the policy, it must ensure that safeguards
are put in place so that it is used effectively -- and sparingly.
Weekly locker searches and frequent dog-sniffing would not only
foster paranoia and insecurity, it would serve as a major distraction
in places that are supposed to be about learning.

The growing use of drugs must be dealt with on numerous fronts: from
drug-prevention programs to personal responsibility, taught at home
and school. This policy must work in tandem with, not in lieu of,
those efforts -- and it must be implemented with the safety of our
children as the clear goal.