SCHOOLS FIGHT LOSING BATTLE TO KEEP DRUGS OUT

The Numbers Only Begin To Tell The Story

Second Of Two Parts

A black Acura with dark tinted windows maneuvered through the Milton
High School parking lot after classes on a Tuesday afternoon,
stopping next to a sport utility vehicle. A passenger from the SUV
climbed into the back seat of the Acura, stayed for less than a
minute and returned to his car.

Police watching the brief encounter believed it was a drug deal
between students. The driver was pulled over a few minutes later and
arrested after officers found marijuana, a glass pipe and a small
scale in the car.

All over the South Shore, teens are not only using drugs, but
bringing them to school.

Sometimes, discreet sales take place in school hallways or parking
lots. In more brazen cases, students say, teens sneak off to
bathrooms and light up a joint in the middle of the day. Most often,
kids stuff their stash in pockets or lockers for easy access when the
final bell rings.

"It's every day, at least in my school," said Katie, a 16-year-old
sophomore at Quincy High School, when asked how often drugs find
their way onto campus.

While an untold number of cases go undetected, the drug offenses that
are reported by local schools offer a glimpse into the problem. A
Patriot Ledger review of state records for the 2004-2005 academic year found:

- --214 South Shore students busted for pot possession and 131 for marijuana use.

- --135 students caught drinking.

- --30 students selling drugs, or in possession of drugs with plans to sell.

Administrators have used everything from drug-sniffing dogs to locker
searches to anonymous tip lines to keep schools clean. They
acknowledge it is a tough battle.

"I think it's more widespread than any of us have a clue of," said
Pamela Gould, the principal at Whitman-Hanson Regional High School.
"The things that these kids are doing, you can't readily see on them
or smell on them."

'High In School'

Jason, who like other students interviewed for this story spoke on
the condition that his last name not be used, became so desperate for
highs that he used heroin, ecstasy, marijuana and any other drugs he
could get his hands on.

Most he left at home when he bothered going to school, but he hid his
marijuana in the soles of his shoes.

"I always made sure I had it before I went to school so when I left
school I had it," said Jason, who dropped out of Marshfield High last
fall before kicking his habit in rehab.

Sometimes, he couldn't wait until the end of the day.

"I've gotten high in school," the 18-year-old admitted. "I've smoked
in the bathroom. Usually people wait until they get out of school."

Usually, but not always.

One 15-year-old sophomore at North Quincy High acknowledged smoking
marijuana between classes.

Where?

"Stairway 6," she said. "It's a hallway you're not supposed to be in."

Her indiscretion attracted the attention of a school security guard
and landed her a 30-day suspension.

Richard Kelley, principal of Silver Lake Regional High School, said
the cases he sees most often involve students who used drugs or
alcohol before school.

"It's not like we find an ounce of marijuana," he said. "We'll find
half of a joint that was used on the way to school. Maybe we'll find
a pipe that has residue in it.

"It's not like kids are walking the halls like Cheech and Chong or
anything. They've come here that way. That's the saddest part to me,
that a teenager would get up in the morning, at 7 in the morning, and
find the need to have a drink."

Regional Problem
---------
[Inset Box]

Crime And Punishment

2,800 disciplinary actions were imposed in 29 South Shore school
systems last year in response to drug- or violence-related incidents
on school property. Here's how they broke down:

290 in-school suspensions
2,363 out-of-school suspensions (10 days or less)
120 exclusions (more than 10 days)
13 expulsions
14 students removed to alternative settings
Source: Department of Education, staff reporting
---------

There problem is region-wide. Forty-two South Shore schools reported
at least one drug offense on school property or at a school function
last academic year.

Twelve middle schools made that list, as did Nathaniel Morton
Elementary School in Plymouth. There, a student was caught in
possession of marijuana.

Among high schools, Scituate reported the highest rate of drug
violations, with 19 marijuana possession offenses.

"You just bring it to school so you can get high before school,
during school, after school," one 17-year-old Scituate student said.
"It makes the day better."

Scituate High Principal Donna Nuzzo-Mueller said the number of drug
offenses last year was significantly higher than usual. In most
cases, pot was found in students' cars, she said, and it is rare for
staff to find drugs in the building.

"We do a lot more of the go out looking, and that includes the
parking lot, because we consider our lockers and our parking lot to
be as important as our bathrooms and our corridors," she said.

Perhaps even more troubling than possession or use is the sale of
drugs on school grounds. While the number of reported offenses was
small, some teens said marijuana and other substances are readily available.

"It's easy," said Melissa, a sophomore at North Quincy High School.

Katelyn, a classmate, said she has been approached before. "They walk
up and they're like, 'Hey, do you need anythingUKP"' she said.

Surveys back up those assertions.

Nearly one-third of high school students said they have been offered,
sold or given a drug on school property, according to the 2003
Massachusetts Youth Risk Behavior Survey. That's down from 42 percent in 1997.

Gould, the Whitman-Hanson principal, said some kids are cunning
enough not to get caught.

"What we see now is the money is changing hands (on school property),
but the drugs are not," she said. "We'll get information that the
kids are doing something, we search them and find nothing."

"It's a battle that we always try to fight," Gould added. "I know
that there are drugs in our building. We just continue to try to fight it."

[Sidebar]

State Requires Reporting

The Department of Education requires schools to file a report with
the state each time an incident involving drugs, violence or criminal
activity takes place on school property.

There are 31 infractions that must be reported, from fighting and
handgun possession to sexual harassment and marijuana use.

In response to a public records request, the Department of Education
provided The Patriot Ledger with documents detailing offenses
reported by every South Shore school during the 2004-2005 school
year. Information about the number of victims and offenders involved
was also supplied.

In some cases, a single incident could have been counted as an
offense in more than one category. For example, a fight involving a
knife could be recorded as both a physical fight and a weapons offense.

The state considers an event to have occurred on school property not
only if it took place on the actual campus, but also on a school bus
or at a place where a school-sponsored event was held.

The Patriot Ledger calculated rates for certain offenses based on a
school's enrollment. To simplify the data, similar offenses were
combined into one category. For instance, knife, gun and other
weapons offenses were taken together to determine an overall rate for
weapons violations.

Several administrators noted that schools that are particularly
vigilant when dealing with and reporting violent or illegal behavior
would show a higher offense rate than schools that are less
aggressive in enforcing policies.

[Sidebar #2]

Crime And Punishment

Principals Seek To Balance Discipline, Compassion

They did the crime and they got the time.

South Shore administrators meted out 2,800 punishments ranging from
in-school suspensions to permanent expulsions for drug- and
violence-related offenses on school property last academic year.

Administrators say that in each case, they must weigh the needs of
students involved with the safety of the school population.

"To suspend a student is a very significant thing," said John
Sheehan, the principal of Randolph Community Middle School. "You're
taking them out of an educational setting and putting them in an
unsupervised setting at home, because many times parents aren't there.

"At the same time we take discipline at school very seriously,"
Sheehan added. "If students are engaging in behavior that is violent
or unacceptable, we need to take action that is appropriate within
the code of conduct."

With few exceptions, Massachusetts leaves discipline decisions up to
individual school districts. State law basically allows principals to
expel students for bringing weapons or drugs to school, or for
assaulting staff. Even in those cases, however, administrators can
opt for a lesser punishment.

"Most discipline policies - what happens if you hit a kid, what
happens if you skip school - those are decided on locally," said
Heidi Perlman, a spokeswoman for the state Department of Education.

Out-of-school suspensions of 10 days or less accounted for 84 percent
of disciplinary action stemming from drug- or violence-related
offenses on the South Shore last year. Exactly how long a student is
booted from school depends on the town and the circumstances of the offense.

At Whitman-Hanson Regional High School, for example, a first-time
offender who violates violence or drug policies is usually given a
five-day out-of-school suspension. That jumps to 10 days for a second offense.

Students do not receive credit for any work missed during the absence.

"That is a big message," Principal Pamela Gould said.

At Randolph Community Middle School, the student handbook calls for a
10-day suspension for a physical fight, although Sheehan said he has
discretion when determining length.

"We really do a thorough investigation of all incidents that are
violent or involve weapons," he said.

While the most common action, administrators say suspensions are only
one method used to address problem behavior.

Marilyn Weber, principal of Center Elementary School in Abington,
said she meets with students and parents before the child is allowed
to return to school.

"I talk to the student about the infraction and what the student had
time to think about," she said. "I want to get an idea that the
student is thinking, 'What I did is wrong,' that there is remorse."

In addition, the school support team meets to determine if any
follow-up action should be taken. If the fight that prompted the
suspension took place during recess, for instance, a school
adjustment counselor or psychologist might check on the student at
that time, Weber said.

At Whitman-Hanson High School, students who are suspended for drug
offenses aren't allowed to participate in any extracurricular or
social activities for 45 days after returning unless they sign a
contract agreeing to counseling and random drug testing.

"Kids are human. They're going to make mistakes," Gould said. "I
think our job as administrators and educators is to guide them
through the mistakes."