SCHOOL HELPS PARENTS TEST KIDS FOR DRUGS

A Cedar Rapids high school has joined a local hospital to help parents test
their suspicions about teen drug use, officials said Tuesday.

The new program lets parents of Xavier High School students have free drug
tests performed on their children, day or night, said Jeff Henderson,
principal of the private Catholic school.

"If a student comes in at 2 a.m. and the parents are concerned about their
demeanor, they can take them down" to Mercy Medical Center, Henderson said.
"This is not about the school trying to act as a parent. This is about our
school trying to help our parents be a parent."

Results won't be shared with the school or law enforcement unless a parent
chooses, said Jim Rogers, Mercy's laboratory administrative director.
Students must sign an agreement before parents can see the test results, he
said.

"It's got to be a pretty desperate situation to come to this point," Rogers
said.

Parents of the 685 ninth-through 12th-graders at Xavier received letters
about the program in recent weeks.

Andrew Prignitz, a senior, said he doesn't think the school has much of a
drug problem. He's unconcerned about the new program.

"I think it's kind of a good idea, actually. It doesn't really affect me,"
Prignitz said. "Some kids are kind of mad about it and don't really think
it's fair. Most kids are like me, though."

The test on a urine sample wouldn't check for alcohol or nicotine but would
detect common street drugs, including cocaine, marijuana and speed, Rogers
said.

Xavier has set aside $2,000 from a federal drug prevention grant to cover
the costs of the tests.