K-9 DRUG SEARCHES FIND LITTLE FAVOR AT HEARING

GROTON -- Students took center stage last Monday night at the high school's
Black Box Theater when Groton Dunstable Regional School District officials
held a special public hearing on proposed changes to the district's policy
regarding drug and alcohol searches on school grounds.

"Everyone keeps saying that parents are on the front lines, that there's a
war on drugs," said student Sean Rourke. "But students are."

While admitting that the school system's teachers and staff "were the
biggest influence" in his life aside from his parents, 2002 graduate Seth
Lawrence disagreed with the proposed policy that would allow unannounced
searches for drugs or alcohol, including those performed by trained dogs.

"Drug dealers will get smarter," claimed Lawrence. "The problem will be
removed from the schools to places where we will not be able to reach."

On the other hand, students could be just as divided about what to do about
the problem of illicit substances in the schools as their elders were, with
some citing a lack of trust in young people by the administration.

"I want to agree that our school has come a long way," said student
representative to the School Committee, Michael Fredrickson. "It helped to
build a community that's strong, that's very respectful. I don't think we
should see this as a slap in the face or a lack of respect. This is
supposed to be a benefit to us. To make the community stronger."

Many of the 100 or so students and residents who attended Monday's hearing
were skeptical of the usefulness of dogs in searching for drugs or alcohol.

"I think that canine searches are a terrible thing to have in our schools,"
said Marion Stoddart. "I feel that they will have a very bad influence on
classrooms."

"I don't think the district is pointing to any single strategy," temporized
Policy Subcommittee member Chuck McKinney, while fellow committee member
Judy Converse admitted that there was no evidence on just how effective
searches by canines were in discovering banned substances.

That response earned Converse some scattered applause.

According to School Superintendent Mary Jennings, the district has allowed
a search by dogs only once and that was restricted to a parking lot. A
second request for a similar search was turned down.

Still, the superintendent defended the need for canine searches.

"We want to have every tool possible, but use dogs sparingly," Jennings
said. "But we think we should be able to use that if needed."

Jennings told those attending Monday's hearing that the "tone" of the high
school, at least, has changed since the new building was completed. Now she
feels that more data is needed before moving forward with possible searches
by dogs.

What prompted the review of the district's policy regarding drug and
alcohol searches was a survey of students done before the new high school
opened, which indicated among other things that at least 27 percent had
been offered drugs in the past, a statistic higher than the state average.

"I'm all for eradicating drugs from schools," said parent Paul Slaney,
adding that he was concerned that the dictum "innocent until proven guilty"
would be lost in the assumption of guilt demonstrated by the need for
unannounced searches by canines.

Slaney said that such searches would send a "bad message" to students and
were tantamount to the police coming to his home and searching it without a
warrant.

"I'm against having searches," Slaney concluded.

"I disagree with the dog searches," agreed another resident. "There's no
upside that I can see."

The conflicting viewpoints of parents and students regarding searches was
emblematic of the difficulties members of the Policy Sub-committee have had
in trying to craft language in the policy that will satisfy everyone.

"I thought the hearing was good," said McKinney philosophically. "It was
well-attended, with a diversity of opinion."

"It's about what I expected," said School Committee Chairman Alan Vervaeke.
"I think the students have their concerns about canine searches."

Vervaeke felt that part of the problem involving the difference of opinion
was the meaning of "random" searches, which he thought would not be random
at all.

"Random is a pat down at the airport or urinealysis," Vervaeke said. "This
policy is announced, that's not random."

As for the proposed policy itself, McKinney said it would go back to the
Policy Sub-committee for more tinkering before being presented again to the
full School Committee.

Also in attendance at Monday's hearing were middle school Principal Beth
Raucci, high school Principal Joseph Dillon, school Health Director Judy
Robinson and Policy Subcommittee member Karen Lofgren.