ROTARY HEARS THE MESSAGE AND METHOD OF DARE

Grade 6 Anti-Drug Program Started In L.A., Now Taught In 43 Countries

HURONIA WEST OPP brought the DARE program to the Wasaga Beach Rotary
Club last week.

DARE officer Constable Sue Fagan and Constable Mark Kinney explained
exactly how the DARE program works.

"DARE stands for Drug Abuse Resistance Education and the program
targets Grade 6 students, equipping them with skills to resist peer
pressure to experiment with tobacco, drugs and alcohol," Fagan said.

The DARE program was started in 1983 by the Los Angeles Police
Department and started in Canada in 1996. It is now taught in 43
countries world wide.

The DARE program is organized into nine classroom sessions, with a
uniformed officer leading the sessions and acting as a role model.
They discuss the DARE decision making model -- Define, Assess,
Respond, Evaluate. The classes include group discussions and role-playing.

"It is a valuable program with a proven track record," said Fagan.

Huronia West OPP delivers the program to 16 elementary schools in the
area, 12 public, three Catholic and one Christian. The cost of the
program is about $6,960 annually, only $8.70 a student..

The Wasaga Beach Rotary Club has sponsored DARE by buying bicycles as
prizes in the DARE bike-a-thon. The club will consider the DARE
program at future executive meetings.