PLAN WOULD TIGHTEN DRUG POLICY

Superintendent Says Harsher Penalties Are Necessary Deterrant

Because they believe using drugs once is one time too many, Shasta Union
High School District trustees plan to increase the consequences for
possessing illegal substances at school.

Right now, a student caught with alcohol, drugs or drug paraphernalia on
campus for the first time can be suspended for one to five days, referred to
counseling and cited by the Redding Police Department.

Superintendent Mike Stuart has recommended another level of intervention --
either sending that child to a continuation school for nine weeks or
requiring them to have six weeks of counseling and random drug tests for the
rest of the year.

Parents would be involved in that choice, he said.

"We believe there are some things that students should not do, even one
time," Stuart said. "This is a tough policy. I think it's necessary."

Last year, five or six students were caught with drugs, alcohol or drug
paraphernalia from each of the three traditional schools in the district --
Enterprise, Foothill and Shasta, Stuart said.

The policy would not apply to students with tobacco, matches or lighters,
nor would it apply to students who are attending after-school activities. It
would also not apply to students who sell drugs on campus, who are required
by the state education code to be expelled.

Trustee Diana Anderson worried that using Pioneer or Churn Creek high
schools as a punishment would add to the misconception that continuation
school students are "bad kids." Students are there for a wide variety of
reasons, including the inability to thrive in a much larger traditional high
school, she pointed out.

"This is one more reason to look at it as a dumping ground," Anderson said.
But the continuation schools have excellent drug and alcohol programs that
could help students who are caught with illegal substances, Stuart said.
About 80 percent of students at Pioneer and Churn Creek high schools have
substance abuse problems (including nicotine), said Greg Beale, the
district's alternative education director.

Beale and Churn Creek High teacher Karl Schuderer said college-preparatory
students could suffer academically during their stay at the continuation
schools because they don't offer many electives that colleges require.
Stuart was unsympathetic, saying they could make up credits at Shasta
College or through summer school.

"It's part of the price they pay," Stuart said.

Trustees will discuss the proposal again at a future meeting.

Reporter Kerri Regan can be reached at 225-8215 or at kregan@redding.com.