STUDENT DRUG TESTS EXPLORED

Autry Pushes Random but Voluntary System

Mayor Alan Autry resurrected a controversial proposal to conduct
random drug testing in schools, this time pushing a voluntary program
similar to one at San Clemente High School.

The San Clemente model surfaced during a summit Thursday that Autry
convened with national deputy drug czar Dr. Andrea Barthwell in
downtown Fresno, one of four held this month and next throughout the
country.

The all-day seminar attracted about 200 educators, drug counselors and
community leaders. It covered a variety of issues related to student
drug testing.

Barthwell said drug testing should be part of a comprehensive program
and conducted at the discretion of local districts. She said Autry's
stance on the issue was "putting Fresno on the map."

The topic of student drug testing has long been the source of fierce
debate and concern over whether testing violates students' civil
liberties. At least one often-cited 2003 study, from the University
of Michigan, claims that drug testing does not deter use. At
Thursday's summit, Ball State University researcher Joseph McKinney
said other studies have found that testing does deter drug use.

In Fresno, the topic is controversial as well.

Autry came under fire last May during his annual State of the City
speech for pressing local school districts to randomly test students
for drugs. With districts uninterested, the proposal languished.

Autry said Thursday that while he still prefers random testing of
students, the San Clemente program is an attractive
alternative.

"The San Clemente model is way better than what we have now, which is
nothing," Autry said. "If that's where we have to start, that's fine.
We're losing kids every day."

San Clemente High Principal Charles Hinman detailed his school's
program at the summit, saying about half the school's 2,800 students
volunteered for the drug testing, now in its second year.

Students must turn in a form indicating whether they are willing to be
randomly tested for drugs. Turning in the form is mandatory to enroll
in school.

This generally forces parents and their children to have a discussion
about drugs, Hinman said.

The school provides a private drug testing company with a list of
students who have volunteered to be tested. The company uses a
computer program to randomly select about 30 students a week for
testing, which is done on campus.

The program costs $7,000 a year. San Clemente uses money from the
parking fees it charges juniors and seniors to pay for the testing.

If a student tests positive for drugs, the results are sent to the
parents. The school does not know the results of the test, nor do
police. Parents may seek counseling from the school for their
children, but what they do with the results is up to them.

This process, Hinman said, keeps school involvement to a minimum
unless parents choose to seek school help.

Hinman said the program gives students an excuse to say no to peers
who may invite them to do drugs. They can say that their parents made
them enroll in the program and that they could be tested at any time.

"The intent of the program is not to catch kids doing drugs," Hinman
said. "It is partly to arm them with a way to face peer pressure.

"The reality is this: 40% or more of students are doing
drugs."

The first step to implementing a testing program, Hinman said, is to
acknowledge that a school has students who use drugs. "Nobody wants to
do this," he said.

For a program to work, Hinman said, the community and parents must
understand it and support it. It can't be forced, he said. He advised
that a district should take at least six months to explain the plan
and allow for community input and discussion.

Local educational leaders said the San Clemente program has merit, and
they expect to explore implementing something similar.

"I liked the concept," said Larry Powell, superintendent of Central
Unified School District. "I'm not in favor of mandatory testing, but I
certainly think we could begin a community discussion on voluntary
drug testing."

Richard Johanson, a member of the Fresno Unified School District board
who also attended the summit, said financing for the program could be
an issue, but the idea was worth examining.

Pete Mehas, superintendent of Fresno County schools, said he was
pleased with Autry's remarks that testing should be part of a
comprehensive plan to combat drug use. A critic of Autry's proposal
last year for mandatory testing, Mehas said he could support a
voluntary program.

Several students from Fresno's Roosevelt High School who attended the
summit supported a voluntary testing program. They agreed that it
would give students an excuse to say no to drugs.

Said senior Phillip Cortez: "If there's five people coming at you to use
drugs, you can say, 'I'm being tested.' There won't be as much pressure."

During a meeting Thursday night in Fresno City Council chambers with
many of the same experts, Autry described the drug-testing issue as
one of the most important initiatives of his administration.

He said drug dealers are marketing to young people "to have lifelong
consumers."

"My police chief has told me that 80% of the kids in Juvenile Hall
test positive for meth," he said. "It's cheap, plentiful and highly
addictive."

Addressing the problem through a third-party agency -- rather than a
school or jail -- will allow testing to be done anonymously.

"You know with absolute clarity you will save lives," he said.