SCHOOLS WILL NOT CONDUCT DRUG TESTS

The Roanoke County Prevention Council Had Sought A Policy Of Random
Testing.

After six months of discussion, the Roanoke County Prevention Council
decided last week to drop its request for county schools to adopt a
random drug testing policy. Instead, the school system is planning to
give parents the option of testing their own children by purchasing
individual drug testing kits through the high schools.

Mark Hurley, coordinator of the prevention council, said the group has
"a lot of other projects taking up staff time."

But according to Superintendent of Instruction Lorraine Lange, the
decision was, at least partly, based on objections that the Roanoke
County School Board heard from parents. Information from public forums
and an online survey were also considered.

"The school board determined that the issue needs to be studied
further," she said. "The school system felt that a lot of parents
weren't looking for random drug testing to be done."

When the council first proposed the idea, it conducted four public
forums.

About 200 parents showed up for the forums, Hurley said, with concerns
varying from funding uncertainties to the tests violating students'
constitutional rights.

"For the most part, people were against it," he said.

The proposed drug testing policy would have affected any student who
participates in athletics, extracurricular activities or who drives to
school and parks on school property. Neighboring Roanoke City Public
Schools do not randomly drug test students, and officials have had no
discussions about a similar program, according to Lou Talbutt,
executive director for student support services.

At the request of Roanoke County School Board Chairman Jerry Canada,
the school system is considering providing drug testing kits for
parents to purchase through the school to test their own children.

"I felt like we needed to do something," he said. "There is some
substance to what we are doing."

Canada said he got the idea out of a publication the board received
from the National School Board Association.

"I don't think the majority of the citizens of Roanoke County are
ready to support random drug testing right now, but if we can
inexpensively provide testing kits as an option for parents, it might
be used sometimes," he said.

JoAnn Burkholder, student assistance program administrator, said there
is no information yet on how it will be done.

As for funding, the school system is looking at a grant from the
prevention council to determine whether or not it could be used to
purchase drug testing kits to place in the high schools, Lange said.
That money would then be replenished as the kits are sold to parents.

"It's something that we're working toward now," Lange said. "At this
point, we're gathering all of the information needed and trying to
price what the kits would be."

Superintendent Linda Weber said the safety of students is the schools'
priority.

"If any of our children get harmed from alcohol or drug abuse, it's
significant," she said. "I want to do everything that I can do to keep
our young people safe, including a program that can help with abuse."

In 2002, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that it is constitutional to
randomly test students involved in extracurricular activities not
connected to academics and students who drive to school and park in
the school's lot. If a student is suspected of being under the
influence, possessing, distributing or selling substances during
regular school hours, at a school function or going to or from school,
Roanoke County's current policy is to notify parents and recommend
that they have their children drug tested, Burkholder said.

However, if a student is expelled for any of the same reasons and
later goes before the school board requesting to be readmitted, he is
required to take a drug test as a stipulation of readmittance
guidelines, Canada said. The guidelines also require such things as
community service and participation in the Student Assistance Program.

The Virginia High School League's policy is to test students involved
in extracurricular activities or athletics during a season and who are
found guilty of being under the influence, possessing or distributing
substances over the weekend off school property.