POLICE COMMISSION DECIDES AGAINST RESTORING D.A.R.E.

Despite interest by at least one area school, the Spring
Lake/Ferrysburg Police Department will not revive its drug education
program.

The police commission Monday agreed that restarting the Drug Abuse
Resistance Education program would require hiring and training an
additional officer, which would cost the village and city at least
$60,000.

Police Chief Roger DeYoung said the costs simply outweigh the benefits
of the program. The commission briefly discussed D.A.R.E. after
officials with the West Michigan Academy for Arts and Academics, a
Ferrysburg-based charter school, expressed interest in reviving the
program.

DeYoung said the charter school was eligible for a grant to help fund
a D.A.R.E. program, but the amount fell far short of the true cost of
offering a D.A.R.E. officer.

Commission members agreed not to support a new D.A.R.E. program and
continue the department's current policy of assigning an officer to
area schools.

D.A.R.E had been offered by the department since 1992 but was dropped
in 2003. The local program had been based on the D.A.R.E America
program that uses police officers to lead classroom lessons to resist
peer pressure and to live drug- and violence-free lives. About 80
percent of the nation's school districts offer D.A.R.E programs.

By eliminating D.A.R.E. in 2003, Spring Lake and Ferrysburg was able
to divert $47,113 in local tax dollars that went to the program.
Instead, the department created a school liaison program which
assigned an officer to schools located in the village and city.
Detective Curt Theune is the current school liaison officer and
members of the police commission said the program appears to be
working well.

"The big thing is we have an officer in schools to build rapport with
the kids," DeYoung said. "That is valuable to establish that
relationship."