SOME SCHOOLS TO START TESTING FOR DRUGS

Plans draw support, but concerns are raised about rights' violations

Schools across the state will add random drug testing and increased locker
inspections to this year's schedule, raising questions about whether such
practices violate civil rights.

At least three school districts in the Houston area and dozens more across
Texas will begin random drug testing, spurred in part by a recent Supreme
Court ruling upholding the practice and by the lure of federal money that
may help pay for it.

The Katy, Splendora and Huffman independent school districts will begin
testing this year, and one company that provides testing for Texas schools
has signed up nearly 30 districts across the state.

Steve London, whose son is a senior in the Katy school district, said the
testing will help prevent drug use.

"If we have a tool available where we can make a dent or get a few students
not to start using drugs, I think we should use it," he said.

But the idea of students who participate in competitive after-school
activities and those who drive to campus being randomly tested for drugs
makes American Civil Liberties Union officials squirm.

The ACLU has argued in lawsuits that such tests violate the Fourth Amendment
and other privacy protections.

"If the school district is concerned with the long-term health of their
students, this is the wrong way to go about it," said Will Harrell,
executive director of the ACLU of Texas. "Students who are occasionally
experimenting with drugs may choose not to participate in extracurricular
activities that could lead them to a cleaner, healthier lifestyle."

Harrell said school districts should focus their attention on decreasing the
student-teacher ratio and making sure students have adequate textbooks.

School officials in Katy, however, think drug testing will give the district
more muscle in preventing drug use among students and in helping those who
have a drug problem.

"We thought this would be good for the district," said Steve Stanford, a
spokesman for the 42,000-student district. "This is a way to help students.
If we can help one student get off drugs, then that is worth it. If we don't
know they have a problem, we can't help them."

Starting this year, Splendora and Katy students who want to participate in
competitive extracurricular activities and students who drive to school must
have a permission slip signed by their parents granting permission for
random tests.

The company that will handle Katy's testing, Houston-based Pinnacle Medical
Management labs, will then randomly select students each week from a
computer database to be tested. Harvey Graves, the company's chief executive
officer, said about half the student population will be tested each school
year.

"Eventually all school districts will be doing this," Graves said. "Schools
are having so much trouble with violence, crime and low attendance, all of
which may be linked to drug use."

Last year, the Magnolia Independent School District implemented random drug
testing of students who participate in extracurricular activities.

Magnolia Assistant Superintendent Todd Stephens said the testing has been
good for the students.

"It has been overwhelmingly positive," he said. "There was some initial
concerns, but once we explained to parents this wasn't a `gotcha' thing,
people seemed to agree with it."

He said of 2,600 high school students, 250 were tested and fewer than five
tested positive for drugs. He added that suspending students from activities
is a last resort.

The Houston Independent School District has no plans to start random drug
testing of students, but officials said they will beef up locker searches
this school year. The district uses a German shepherd named Rocko to sniff
for drugs. Rocko has been recently trained to find the designer drug Ecstasy
and the prescription pill Xanax.

There are no official numbers of how many districts in the nation do random
drug testing, but it is thought to be about 5 percent or less, said Glenn
Backes, the California capital director of the Drug Policy Alliance, a
nonprofit organization working to broaden the public debate on drug policy.

In 2002, the Supreme Court ruled 5-4 that school officials' responsibility
for the health and safety of their students can outweigh students' privacy
concerns, overriding the Fourth Amendment argument against unreasonable
searches.

The California state Senate is considering a bill banning random drug
testing in that state's schools.

President Bush proposed $23 million for drug testing in schools in his State
of the Union address earlier this year.

Each drug test costs about $20, school officials said. The Katy school
district has set aside $125,000 for the testing, $25,000 of which is from
federal funds.

The money being spent on the tests is a major concern for Barbara Petracco,
who has two children in Katy high schools.

"We don't need to be spending a lot of money on this when we haven't
addressed the educational needs of our students," she said.

Sandra Caillet, whose children attend James E. Taylor High School in Katy,
said she also disagrees with the new policy.

"I think it's terrible," she said. "I'm not concerned about my kids being
tested because I don't think they are doing drugs. But to have students have
to take random drug tests in order to get a parking pass is ridiculous."

But Mayde Creek High School senior Jessica Miller, 17, is happy the Katy
school district will start testing students. She said it will help
discourage athletes from using steroids and may prevent students from using
other drugs.

"Some of the students aren't taking it very well," she said. "But the
students who are coming to school stoned and driving under the influence are
putting lives in danger.

"If people aren't doing drugs, they don't have anything to worry about."

WHAT'S DETECTABLE? Drug testing can detect the following substances:

Amphetamines/methamphetamines (speed, uppers, diet pills)

Barbiturates (downers, sleeping pills)

Benzodiazepines (Valium, Librium)

Cannabinoid (marijuana)

Cocaine metabolite

Ethanol (alcohol)

Other substances: Hallucinogens, methadone, opiates, phencyclidine,
propoxyphene and steroids

TESTING IN KATY

How it works: The student will be asked to submit a urine sample. If the
test is positive, the testing company will contact parents to see if there
is a medical explanation.

If drugs are suspected: The district will be notified. Those students will
be suspended from their extracurricular activity for at least three weeks.

To follow up: Students will undergo weekly drug tests during their
suspension. Negative results will allow them to continue the activity.
Counseling also will be required.

If the problem continues: Students who test positive again can be suspended
from activities for six weeks. A third positive test could result in a
suspension from the activity for the entire school year.