HART SCHOOL DISTRICT APPROVES DRUG TESTING

Students Question Effectiveness Of Voluntary Program

A 90-day voluntary random drug testing program will begin at every
Hart district school in March, but some local teenagers remained
skeptical Thursday.

"Kids aren't going to stop doing drugs because they might get
randomly caught," said 17-year-old Jenna Kunkle, a West Ranch High
School senior.

District officials consider the program an effective deterrent for
student drug use, said Darryl Adams, director of human resources.

Hart district board members unanimously approved the program
Wednesday yet some members question the program's approach.

"When we have it totally voluntary, it really limits how effective
it's going to be," said Dennis King, William S. Hart Union High
School District board member, on Thursday.

When first proposed more than a year ago, school officials considered
initiating a mandatory drug testing program only for students
involved in extracurricular activities.

The approved drug testing program includes all students and requires
parents and their students to sign a permission slip together.

"Drug use is a problem and no administrator or parent wants kids to
think drug use is okay," said 17-year-old Dylan Davis, a West Ranch
High School senior.

"However, a school's job is to educate," Davis said. "The more they
focus on a student's off-campus life, the less focused they are on
the student's education, which should be the number-one priority."

The program does not use any money from the district or Hart district
parents. The district will receive a $216,000 Department of Education
grant for the 2008-09, 2009-10 and 2011-12 school years.

The third-party drug company handles all of the testing, leaving
teachers and administrators out of the drug-testing process.

With a green light from the board, district officials are working on
a marketing plan to brand the program as something that's helpful for
Hart district parents, Adams said.

School officials will visit schools, parent group meetings, City
Council meetings and use e-mails to promote the voluntary random
drug-testing program, Adams said.

Adams experienced a voluntary random drug-testing program when he was
a school principal.

"I felt that it worked then and it will give students an opportunity
to say no," he said.

(Emily Heckelman contributed to this report.)