ADULT D.A.R.E. PROGRAM PUTS PARENTS IN TOUCH

NORWICH -- For the last five weeks, Valerie Musial has spent a good
portion of her evenings in the basement of Norwich Police
headquarters, going through everything from the appearance of drugs to
the language for it.

Like the other women who finished the Drug Abuse Resistance
Education's Parent Education Program Monday night, she said the course
gave her ideas about talking to her child about illicit drugs.

"It's food for thought," said Musial, a Norwich resident and mother of
two who works as a project manager with Computer Science Corp. "After
every class, I come home and bring up something with my daughter. It
helps a lot."

The D.A.R.E. program was the first of its kind in the city. It is
aimed at giving parents information on drugs, drug use and steps
parents can take to prevent their children from being roped in. The
class was conducted by Norwich police officers Kevin Creamer and Damon
Wallace.

Many of the parents interviewed said they had gotten involved after
their children went through the regular D.A.R.E. program.

"I'm surprised at the amount of information I've learned," said Rachel
McLaughlin, a designer at Electric Boat who lives in Norwich. "I
thought it would be all pretty straight forward."

The class Monday night was preceded by a tour of the police
department. The class itself consisted of discussions of the effects
of peer pressure and how parents can intervene before a student falls
into an addiction problem.

The police officers also played a videotape from D.A.R.E., in which a
mullet-headed tempter lures another child into a world of cigarettes,
alcohol, acid and hockey hair.

Rae-Jean Trantalis, a nurse who lives in Norwich, said she had come to
the organization, like the other participants, to get as much
information as she could.

"You hear a lot about what stuff they do, which household stuff they
do," she said. "So I want to get more information on what's out there,
and just get more stuff."

There was information in the course that concerned the parents,
including stories about raves and the various ways of using drugs,
including the use of pens to inhale certain substances.

"Some younger-aged kids are getting started on the stuff," Trantalis
said. "That's really scary. That brings the message home."