PTA FETED FOR ANTI-DRUG CAMPAIGN

The nearly 400 members of the Parent-Teacher Association of the Clara
B. Worth Elementary School in Berkeley are a dedicated bunch.

For the past several years they've organized a program at the school
to educate students and parents about substance abuse.

The PTA's efforts were acknowledged by the New Jersey Parent-Teacher
Association at the state organization's 106th annual convention in
Atlantic City Nov. 17 when it received the Substance Abuse Prevention
Award.

The award was one of two the PTA received; it also received the
Outstanding Membership Award for two programs that increased
membership a year after the pupil population dropped at the school by
30 percent.

"The PTA embarked on an ambitious program during Red Ribbon Week held
in October 2005 because it felt a need to empower their parents with
information that could help them discuss drug prevention with their
children," said Beverly McEntee, chairwoman of the state PTA's
Substance Abuse Prevention Award panel.

The program included daily themes, beginning with students making a
pledge to be drug-free, wearing red clothing, taking home a red tulip
bulb to plant at home to symbolize their ongoing commitment to remain
drug free, and wearing their clothes backward or inside out so they
could "turn their back on drugs," said Sandra Frandano, who was
president of the PTA during the 2005-06 school year at the time of the
program.

The program, which received support from the Berkeley Municipal
Alliance, included fliers, wristbands and other items sent home daily
with pupils, as well as tips for parents about how to engage their
children in discussions about the dangers of substance abuse, she said.

The PTA also sponsored the 15-Minute Child Break, a program designed
by the Partnership for a Drug-Free New Jersey to give parents
information about talking to their children about drugs, she said.

Membership programs consisted of two contests, one aimed at getting
men involved in the PTA. The PTA finished the 2005-06 school year with
393 members and of that number, 134 were men.

This year PTA membership is 389 total and of that number 129 are men,
said Karen Bush, publicity chairwoman for the school PTA.

"We don't need awards to justify the countless hours we volunteer for
our students and our school, but it's nice to be recognized," Frandano
said. "These programs don't happen without everyone doing their part,
whether it's contributing half an hour or half of their day."