MADISON COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT WILL BE RANDOMLY SCREENING ATHLETES,
MUSICIANS, SCHOLARS

Mention random drug testing in school, and many envision a burly athlete
having to give a urine sample.

But a seventh-grade scholar?

Under the Madison County School District's new random-drug-testing policy,
the playing field is level for talented thinkers and musicians, as well as
athletes. Any student in an extracurricular activity, be it choir or
football or National Honor Society, is subject to testing.

The goal is to discourage drug use across the board, Superintendent Mike
Kent said. "We hope we don't catch anybody and that the threat of losing
eligibility will inspire these kids and give them a reason to say 'no,' " he
said.

The policy, which applies to anyone in extracurricular activities in junior
and senior high schools, takes effect when school opens Aug. 13. The
district was one of the first in the state to approve a policy of testing
students randomly, not just for suspicion of drug use.

The Clinton School District has considered implementing such a policy, but
Superintendent Tommye Henderson said she and the school board think the
random testing policy has some drawbacks.

"I feel like the policy singles out a group of students who have elected to
go beyond academics. Right now, I don't believe it's a fair situation,"
Henderson said.

One woman who will find out is Mary Lita Tigrett. Not only is she a parent
of two high school students who may be selected for testing, she is also an
eighth-grade teacher at Madison Middle School responsible for collecting
drug-testing consent forms from the parents of about 200 seventh- and
eighth-grade Beta Club members.

Parents and students must sign the testing consent form before any child is
allowed to participate in extracurricular activities. The policy affects
roughly 3,000 students.

Beta Club members are honor students whose only out-of-school activity is
the annual spring Beta Club competition. "These are the kids least likely to
do drugs," she said.

Although Tigrett has some concerns about exactly how and by whom the policy
will be implemented, she does support it and is not worried about her
children being randomly tested. Julie Tigrett is a cheerleader, and David
Tigrett is a band member at Madison Central.

"I am not against it in any way," she said. "I think it will make students
more responsible."

Both younger Tigretts said they support the policy.

"If you're doing that kind of stuff, it's bad. You should be punished if you
get caught," David Tigrett said.

Lacy Jacks, a junior at Madison Central High School, will be subject to
random drug testing as a pitcher for the girls' softball team.

"I think it's a good idea. I don't think you should have athletes doing
drugs and playing sports at the same time," she said. "Most of my friends
are fine with it, but we don't have a problem with drugs."

The random drug testing policy may be controversial with some parents who
fear false positive tests results - which are possible with use of
prescription drugs - but not Susan Koen.

"I'm all for it. ... There's a lot of drugs in the schools. It should have
been done a long time ago," said Koen, who has a daughter at Madison Central
High School.

The federal Supreme Court, in a 5-4 decision, ruled last year that schools
could use random drug testing in extracurricular activities as a matter of
"health and safety."

The ACLU previously has opposed the policy, saying it is an ineffective way
to fight drug addiction and has called into question the reliability of the
tests.

The tests will be administered by Corporate Health Services of the Baptist
Medical Center.

Renee Cotton, director of CHS, said students' names will be chosen at random
by computer. Students are not visually monitored during the test. "We do
everything in our power to ensure it is not degrading or uncomfortable," she
said.

If a child tests positive, the student and parents are notified before
school personnel.

Any student testing positive for an illegal or performance-enhancing drug,
such as an anabolic steroid, will not be able to participate in school
activities for 28 days, after which they will be retested. If clean, the
student can continue to participate; if not, the student can be sent to
Alternative School for a year.

A student found in possession of illegal drugs is suspended for 10 days with
the possibility of a one-year expulsion.

"We are in great hopes this policy will be a deterrent to people to not make
poor decisions," said Ronnie McGehee, assistant superintendent.

McGehee said the district received "tons of positive feedback" from public
informational meetings in conjunction with the new policy.

"Of course, that's prior to somebody getting caught," he said.

The cost is roughly $25 per test, with $20,000 set aside in the budget to
cover costs. Students who refuse the test will be barred from
extracurricular activities. Positive tests will not be turned over to law
enforcement.

Tests will be conducted at seven schools in the district, with some of the
larger schools seeing monthly random tests.

"My guess is before the month of August is over, we will have tested some
kiddos," Kent said.