ROCKLAND STUDENTS POLLED ON DRUG, ALCOHOL USE

The third PRIDE survey of Rockland children's use of drugs, alcohol and
tobacco now is under way, with results expected to be released in late April.

As in 1996 and 1999, students in fifth, eighth and 10th grades are being
asked anonymously for frank information about their habits and casual use
of everything from wine coolers to Ecstasy, and whether they feel safe in
school.

"We do the survey so we can keep our finger on the pulse of how well our
students are faring and also as a way of checking on our health education
programs," said Bedelia Fries, assistant superintendent for North Rockland
schools.

"Each time that we see the results come back countywide, we have a series
of meetings where we analyze the results and make adjustments if needed
in how we offer our curriculum," she said.

Seven of the county's eight public school districts participated in the
first two Parents Resource Institute on Drug Education surveys. Nanuet
schools, which does not participate in PRIDE, has its students complete a
similar survey by the Rocky Mountain Behavioral Science Institute. This
year, the American Drug and Alcohol Survey will be given March 19 to Nanuet
students.

Students at Clarkstown, North Rockland, Pearl River and South Orangetown
schools have completed the 2002 PRIDE survey. Nyack students will complete
the survey by the end of this week, and East Ramapo schools expect to give
the survey to students next week. No date has been set for Ramapo Central
students to take the survey.

More than 6,000 Rockland students participate each time the survey is
given. Nationally, 90,000 students took the PRIDE survey last year, 20,000
of them from New York.

"The survey also allows us to identify new areas of concern," said Walter
Schneider, dean of students at St. Thomas Aquinas College and the person
who collates the results for the county.

"We're very interested to see the Ecstasy numbers this year," he said,
because Ecstasy use nationally was up.

Although the final results won't be released publicly until April 24,
educators whose schools have completed the survey are concerned about the
number of students who say they do not feel safe in school, said Sal
Chiariello, health coordinator for Clarkstown schools and one of the people
who helps coordinate distribution of the survey.

Because the number of children who reported they had been victims of
bullies was high on the completed surveys -- specific data are unavailable
- -- a special April 26 workshop has been set up for teachers, health
coordinators and other school personnel. The workshop will begin with
information from this year's PRIDE survey and then concentrate on bullying
prevention.

Past years' survey results have shown that alcohol use among Rockland teens
was higher, and drug and cigarette use was less than the national average.
Generally, the county's children feel safe, but as many as one of every
three children have said they have been threatened by another student more
than once.

Information from the survey is used by districts to show whether health and
prevention programs are effective and to create programs for known
problems, educators said.

"It tells us where the kids are drinking, and when and why and what; the
same thing with other drugs," said Clarkstown's Chiariello.

"And it tells us at what age level. I've been able to change my curriculum.
I had very little tobacco (education) at fifth grade, but the survey showed
that at that age, they begin to dabble so we changed the third- and
fourth-grade curriculum," he said. He said the survey also spurred similar
modifications for violence prevention, with a new program put into place
across the grades to discourage bullying.

North Rockland schools adjusted the middle and high school health
curriculum after the results of the first survey were received, Fries said.

The districts also have used the survey to apply for grants for prevention
programs. Federal Drug-Free School District funds, for instance, require
data on current substance use and how the program will affect student health.

"Now, you now have hard evidence to say such-and-such percent of kids do
this," Chiariello said. "We can now measure behavior and start measuring
the effectiveness of health programs."

Each district receives its own results, but the data are released to the
public only on a countywide level to prevent finger-pointing, Chiariello said.

Substance abuse and safety issues are countywide concerns, he said, because
student friendships don't stop at school district boundaries.