SCHOOL DRUG TESTS POSSIBLE IN DALLAS

Plan differs from Allen in sharing results from voluntary screenings

Dallas schools may have a voluntary drug-testing program similar to the one
announced for the Allen schools in place as early as next year, a Dallas
school official said Thursday.

But the Dallas program may differ from Allen's program in one crucial
detail: The school, not just the parents, would have access to test
results, said Rosemarie Allen, Dallas schools associate superintendent for
student services.

"Ethically, you've got to make sure you do something with the information,"
Dr. Allen said, adding that drug-test results would be used to refer
parents of drug-using students to treatment centers.

Dallas school officials have been considering a drug-testing program for
the last several months, Dr. Allen said. She said she hopes to go to the
Dallas school board with a proposal by the beginning of the spring
semester. If approved, the program could be implemented in the 1999-2000
school year, she said.

Starting this year, Allen schools will randomly test students whose parents
request it. It's the first district in the Dallas-Fort Worth area in which
only the parents will receive the results of the tests.

Representatives for the Plano, Richardson and Arlington school districts
said they are not planning to institute drug-testing programs but will
watch Allen's program closely.

"We will be keeping a close eye to see how it works," said Nancy Long,
communications director for Plano schools. The city has been the focus of
nationwide media attention because it has had 18 heroin-related deaths
since September 1994.

Critics cite privacy concerns in their opposition to drug testing.

Diana Philip, regional director of the American Civil Liberties Union, said
she saw no problem with the Allen district's plan but said that giving
districts access to test results crosses the line of acceptability.

"It's perfectly fine for the schools to be a conduit for referrals to
treatment centers," Ms. Philip said, "but the school has no right to
interfere in something like this. They don't need to know what the results
of a test are.

"In the Allen policy, the parents still have the right to parent their child."

White House drug czar Barry McCaffrey in Washington said officials and
parents should approach drug-testing programs with caution, but his
concerns were more geared toward effectiveness than privacy issues.

"The primary element of drug prevention among young people is a consistent
no-use policy by the family, the school and the church - and then active
engagement with youth," he said.

The Allen district, under a policy approved by the school board this week,
will test only those middle- and high-school students whose parents request
it. Those students will have hair samples taken by the school nurse at a
cost to parents of $45 per test, which will be administered once a semester.

Allen officials say the tests will give students an excuse to avoid
peer-pressured drug use and give parents a chance to seek help for their
children before tragedy strikes.

But Allen's policy, unlike the Dallas proposal and most of the
approximately 40 school districts nationwide that already have drug-testing
programs, will not give the school district access to test results.

Dr. Allen said Dallas also would test only children whose parents request
it. She said the district is seeking corporate and foundation sponsorships
to make testing available to all families, including those who can't afford
it.

"Our families can't all pay for it," Dr. Allen said. "Parents want to know
[if their kids are using drugs], and in many cases parents need to know."

Two Dallas trustees contacted Thursday said they would support the Dallas
district staff's proposal, but they had some reservations about the
district's access to test results.

"As a parent, I would sign the [consent] form," said trustee Roxan Staff.
But "getting information to parents should be the first goal. I think it
would be much more difficult to get parents to cooperate if they know the
school's getting the information."

Trustee Ron Price said it is important for school officials to have access
to the information. But such information must be available only to a select
few people, such as principals and counselors.

"If you mail results to parents, they may never get to the parents' hands,"
Mr. Price said. "If the school district has the information, they can
assist the parents in helping the child."

Dr. Allen said drug-test results will not be used to discipline students
and would help school officials make sure youths with drug problems get the
help they need.

Mr. McCaffrey said the most successful drug-test efforts are those
initiated by the participants themselves, such as a football team that
decides to subject itself to scrutiny.

They also can be helpful in monitoring a repeat drug abuser as part of a
recovery program, he said. But it's less useful to spring a drug test on a
student who, for example, comes under suspicion for a change in conduct.

"If you think that's a tool for his problem, you've missed the point," Mr.
McCaffrey said.

Staff writer David LaGesse in Washington contributed to this report.