DON'T MAKE THE DRUG PROBLEM WORSE

A few traits I remember having in my teenage years was a ferocious
appetite, the desire to sleep past noon and off and on boredom.

I later found out these are common traits among all teens, not just
me. It's like that where I grew up, it's like that in downtown
Portland and it's like that in Yoncalla.

Teenage boredom can be a big problem. I chose to deal with it by
playing sports. There are many other good solutions -- school
activities like drama and choir, clubs like FFA and 4-H.

Something that I enjoy about covering sports in towns like Yoncalla is
seeing the same names on the volleyball, basketball and softball
playing fields, as well as in FFA halls and school concerts. These are
things that are a way of life in small towns.

Unfortunately, so are drugs and alcohol, another way to pass time as a
teenager.

Recently the Yoncalla School Board said that high school students
there reported alcohol and marijuana use higher more than the state
average, according to the 2006-07 Oregon Healthy Teens Survey.

A special meeting on Sept. 19 to discuss drug tests for Yoncalla High
athletes sparked a lot of controversy. According to a News-Review
article, there was discussion of how the proposed tests would be
funded, how effective they would be and privacy issues.

Drug testing for athletes came to national attention because of a
spike in drug abuse, oddly enough, at another Oregon high school
roughly the size of Yoncalla.

In 1987 Vernonia High -- in the northwestern part of the state between
Portland and Astoria -- adopted random tests for athletes. By 1991,
seventh-grade football player James Acton refused to sign a consent
form, and was denied eligibility.

A lawsuit claiming the school district violated Acton's Fourth
Amendment rights guarding against unreasonable search and seizure
eventually made it to the Supreme Court. In Vernonia School District
v. Acton, the court ruled in favor of the school district, saying
athletes, as opposed to entire student bodies, had reduced privacy
rights because districts carry an increased responsibility to athletes.

That case set a precedent, and according to the Drug Policy Alliance,
on average one school district a month adopts random drug testing in
=07America.

I hope Yoncalla isn't the next one.

The effectiveness of drug testing is questionable. Many think they do
more harm than good by undermining trust between students and teachers.

An analysis of teen behavior by the U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services found that students who participated in athletics and
activities were significantly less likely to engage in risky behaviors.

"Compared to those who reported spending one to four hours per week in
extracurricular activities," the report stated. "(Tenth grade)
students who reported spending no time in school-sponsored activities
were 57 percent more likely to have dropped out by the time they would
have been seniors, 49 percent more likely to have used drugs, 37
percent more likely to have become teen parents, 35 percent more
likely to have smoked cigarettes, and 27 percent more likely to have
been arrested."

Students in Yoncalla aren't thinking about Supreme Court cases or
longitudinal analysis when they sign up for sports. They're doing it
because it's a way of life in a small town and a fun way to fight boredom.

They're fighting the problem. Don't punish them for it.