SCHOOL CLUB TO CURB DRUGS

Voluntary Group Will Have Drug Tests As A Requirement For Membership

LAKELAND -- Peer pressure long has been a source of destructive
behavior among students.

Now the Polk County School District hopes it can be a source of prevention.

A new idea to keep students off drugs involves joining an exclusive
club for which random drug testing is a membership requirement.

The Voluntary Student Drug Testing program, which is similar to those
found in Wisconsin and Louisiana, will be piloted at Mulberry High School.

The district already tests student athletes for recreational drugs
and steroids.

But Audrey Kelley-Fritz, the senior manager of prevention, health and
wellness for Polk schools, said that program has left many parents,
teachers and principals unsatisfied.

"They wish we could test more kids," she said. " . . . We think this
would kind of complement our existing program."

So when Community First Credit Union came up with the drug-testing
club idea and $12,000 in seed money, the district was happy to take
it up on the offer.

Mulberry High Principal George Hatch said the program could be in
place by January. He's excited about the program and its potential.

"I just hope it just makes kids think twice before doing something
they shouldn't or something they may regret later," he said.

Kelley-Fritz said Mulberry was selected because the school has a
tight-knit community that is open to these types of ideas.

She will introduce the drugtesting plan to the School Board at
today's agenda study meeting.

According to the presentation material, joining the club would
"motivate students to make a commitment to become and/or remain drug-
and alcohol-free." There also will be prizes for the students, such
as gift certificates.

Club members randomly will be tested biweekly by a nurse or trained volunteer.

Any positive results will be sent to a medical review officer, who
will then contact the parent to determine whether a medication could
have yielded the results.

If students test positive for recreational drugs, their parents will
be contacted. They'll receive a counseling session during school
hours and be suspended from the club for three weeks, after which
they'll have to submit a clean urine sample.

If students test positive a second time, their parents will be
contacted again. They'll be suspended from the club for eight weeks.

And to rejoin, they'll have to go through substance-abuse evaluation
and education at the district's Mark Wilcox Center.

If students fail a third time, refuse to be tested or tamper with a
test, they'll be suspended from the club for one calendar year.

Students can leave the club at any time. But their parents are
notified when they do.

Joining the club is voluntary. But to join, both students and parents
must agree and sign a consent form. Kelley-Fritz said parental
notification is a big part of the club.

"It's important they know what their kids are deciding to do or not
to do," she said.

The club, she said, will target students who are at the age when they
begin to experiment with drugs.

"It's not intended for the heavy user," she said. "It's intended for
the students who are on the fence."

The Mulberry pilot has two goals, according to the presentation.

First, the school would like the club's membership to be 25 percent
of the student population, or about 250 students, by spring.

Second, the school would like to reduce student use of alcohol and
marijuana, along with binge drinking, by 5 percent among nonathletes,
as determined by the drug-use survey students take every spring.

Kelley-Fritz said the club creates the right kind of culture at the school.

"It's positive peer pressure," she said. "Peer pressure is peer
pressure. It just depends on if it's positive or negative."

Hatch said drugs are no more prevalent at Mulberry High than at other
Polk schools. He said he's not sure how many kids the club will keep
off drugs, but any results would be positive.

"My feeling is that if it helps one (student), then it's worth it," he said.

He said he's not concerned about resistance to the club, because it's
a voluntary program. But he didn't see why any parent would object.

"Why would you not want your son or daughter to be drugfree?" he said.