Index for the D.A.R.E. FAILING OUR KIDS series:

Sun, 27 Feb 2000:

D.A.R.E. Doesn't Work
http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n281/a04.html

DARE Wary Of Outside Reviews
http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n281/a02.html

Some Schools Opt Out Of Program
http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n282/a04.html

Officers Become School Favorites
http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n281/a06.html

Officers Hope To Make A Difference
http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n292/a02.html

Analysis Tracks Students' Drug Use
http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n292/a03.html

Mon, 28 Feb 2000:

DARE's Clout Smothers Other Drug Programs
http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n292/a04.html

Raves Thrive As Teen Drug Havens
http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n293/a04.html

Parents Struggle When Discussing Drugs With Teens
http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n292/a05.html

Tips For Parents
http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n293/a03.html

Parents' Anti-Drug Resource Guide [many website links]
http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n293/a02.html

Tue, 29 Feb 2000:

Editorial: Drugs: Dare to be Honest
http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n293/a05.html

Readers: Cops Key to DARE Success, Failure
http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n293/a06.html

DARE WARY OF OUTSIDE REVIEWS

From The Outset, Founder Wasn't Interested In Researchers' Studies About
Effectiveness

In 1983, then-Los Angeles Police Chief Daryl Gates wanted to get police
officers into schools. At the same time, researchers from the University of
Southern California were developing a pair of programs to keep kids off
drugs.

What resulted was a strange brew of politics, police and education
researchers, and explains DARE's long history of clashing with nearly
everyone who has tried to evaluate it.

DARE -- the Drug Abuse Resistance Education program -- actually started as
two separate programs: one focused on self-esteem and goal setting, the
other focused on resisting influences such as alcohol and cigarette ads.

While the USC team was testing the programs in Los Angeles schools, Gates
asked that police officers be the teachers. The researchers refused,
objecting to police in the classroom and fears of losing control of a

The school district forged ahead, combined and rewrote the two programs,
used police as instructors and offered it to fifth-graders, instead of the
seventh grade as designed by USC.

As the district and the university parted ways, researchers found half of
the program -- the self-esteem and goal-setting program -- not only didn't
work, but actually encouraged some kids to experiment.

But by then, DARE was on its way.

"We talked to them about evaluating it, but DARE was never interested,"
researcher Andy Johnson told Reason magazine.

DARE America founder Glenn Levant, a former deputy L.A. police chief,
distrusts most program evaluations.

"The problem is the way they define what DARE is. They may know what it was
at a point in time. We've changed the program 10 times."

Promise, Then Pessimism

In 1986, a National Institute of Justice study showed DARE had some promise.
The timing was perfect.

First Lady Nancy Reagan was admonishing kids to "Just Say No." And Congress
soon approved a large package of drug prevention money, earmarking 10
percent to go to programs taught by uniformed cops. Along with other
criteria, the set-aside perfectly matched DARE, launching the program
nationally.

But a peer review of the earlier National Institute of Justice study soon
found problems, including that DARE might increase drug use among girls. A
follow up study had similar findings, but the institute refused to publish
it.

Instead, the American Journal of Public Health published the study after a
peer review - and over DARE's objections.

"They tried to intimidate us," publication director Sabine Beisler told USA
TODAY at the time.

Over the past 14 years, there have been more than a dozen studies showing
DARE does not work for drug prevention.

DARE has responded to some criticism, though. It formed a scientific
advisory board, for example, although its recommendation to create a testing
lab was never adopted.

Levant says the best evidence DARE is working is that drug use is down.

But that's not necessarily the case. In fact, in 1999, the percentage of
high school seniors who had used any illegal drug in their lifetime was at
its highest level in more than a decade-- 54.7 percent --
according to a University of Michigan study, considered the national
bellwether of teen drug use.

Marijuana was also at its highest level, at 49.7 percent.

Most Detroit-area DARE officers don't bother to defend the program as a drug
preventer, even though DARE America says that's the primary goal.

"Even if the DARE program doesn't keep kids from doing drugs... it's worth
it," said Dearborn Police Sgt. Jeff Dombrowski. He said kids report upcoming
parties and other potential problems to officers.

"You have the public relations part of it, officers getting to know the
kids. ... it eliminates a lot of harassment."