SALEM SUPERINTENDENT PLANS TO FORM DRUG-TESTING TASK FORCE

SALEM - Superintendent Herbert Levine put out the call for
volunteers yesterday to serve on a special task force that will
consider whether the schools should begin random drug tests of students.

Levine intends to move quickly with the initiative, he said. He is
hopeful the Superintendent's Drug Testing Task Force can begin work by
the first week of March and have something for the School Committee
to consider by April. The task force will have about 16 people, he
said. And although it will be up to the superintendent to decide who
will serve, Levine said he is not looking to stack the board in
either direction.

"I don't want to put people on there that are so pained by personal
experience that they can only think of drug testing," he said. "And I
don't want people on there who were taking over buildings at Boston
University in the 1960s and would never think of drug testing."

The superintendent said he has no idea what the task force will come
up with - if anything - but he expects a lively debate.

Ultimately, the decision on drug testing will rest with the School
Committee, which sets school policy. And no matter what the task force
decides, Levine still could submit his own recommendation to the
School Committee. "If the task force decides to turn thumbs down to
recommend any student drug testing, that does not mean I would not
submit something on my own," he said. "It certainly would not have the
same weight, of course." Jim Fleming, the School Committee
vice-chairman, has said he is a strong supporter of privacy and civil
rights, but he would probably agree to a drug-testing program if Salem
has a proven problem.

Levine first broached the possibility of student drug testing at a
forum about the region's heroin/OxyContin problem among area young
people last Monday. Levine's 19-year-old son, Joel, discussed his
struggle with OxyContin, while Levine shared the impact Joel's
addiction has had on his entire family. "We have to shine the light of
day on this problem," Levine said. The superintendent is interested in
random drug testing for the entire high school population, but he is
not certain that is legal. The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that drug
testing students that participate in athletics and extracurricular
activities is acceptable, however.

At least two technical high schools in the state - Assabet Valley
Vocational Technical School in Marlborough and Northeast Vocational
High School in Wakefield - presently have some type of drug-testing
programs, said Jerry Luster, the senior vice president of Calloway
Drug Testing in Wakefield, which conducts the tests.

Levine is hoping the threat of a drug test will stop a some students
from trying the potentially fatal drugs.

In addition to himself, Levine already has named four administrators
to the task force - Middle School Principal Mary Manning, High
School Principal Ann Papagiotas, health coordinator Julie Dougherty
and athletic director Sean Gallagher. The task force also will include
teachers, at least four parents, an at-large community representative,
a member of the medical community, and a police officer. Levine also
will invite students to participate.

"There should be at least a couple of students from the high school
that I will add to the task force after we get the folks together and
established," Levine said. "I will probably leave that up to the high
school principal." Anyone interested in serving should submit a
statement of interest, two or three paragraphs in length, explaining
their qualifications and reasons for applying. Statements should be
submitted to the School Department. The deadline is Feb. 7. All Drug
Testing Task Force meetings will be open to the public, Levine said.
He has tentatively scheduled the first one for 6:30 p.m., Wednesday,
March 2, in the School Committee chamber at the middle school.