USM OFFICIALS: DRUG POLICY MEMO WRONG

Some Staff Wrongly Given The Go-Ahead On New Rules

A new drug and alcohol policy at the University of Southern Mississippi has
been delayed although some USM administrators were wrongly advised Tuesday
to move ahead with implementing the proposal.

The Hattiesburg American reported Monday that USM president Shelby Thames
had delayed implementing the policy until mid to late January after
questions about certain sections emerged.

Tuesday, university administrators received an e-mail from Mark S. Dvorak,
director of Human Resources, advising them that the media was wrong and
that administrators should "proceed as directed" on implementing the new
drug policy.

USM spokesman Lisa Mader said unfortunately Dvorak was not notified of the
change.

"It was an internal communication breakdown," Mader said. "He was not
notified of the change, which is our own mistake."

Chemistry professor John A. Pojman said the university could have avoided
the controversy and opposition to the proposed policy had administrators
given the policy to faculty members for review before ordering its
implementation.

"Had faculty members been consulted early we could have avoided this
misunderstanding and regrettable confusion," Pojman said.

The new policy states: "All employees should be on notice that, if they
choose to use illegal drugs or engage in the habitual use of alcohol (even
during non-work hours), they are likely to report to work with detectable
levels of those substances in their bodies and will be in violation of the
university's drug and alcohol abuse policy."

Pojman said he has several issues with the proposed policy including the
fact that the policy calls for zero detection limit.

"As a chemist, this does not make sense since alcohol can still be detected
within 24 to 36 hours after its use," Pojman said. The policy is also
opposed by the USM chapter of the American Association of University
Professors. The AAUP delayed seeking a court injunction last week until the
policy review by the administration is completed.