WALTON-VERONA MAY LAUNCH DRUG TESTING

Walton-Verona school officials hope a drug-testing program for student
athletes will cut down on drug use in the high school. The
Walton-Verona Board of Education will discuss a drug-testing policy at
its meeting Aug. 18.

Walton-Verona Superintendent Bill Boyle said the district wants to
give students another reason to stay away from the use of illegal
drugs and alcohol.

The number of students who say they use drugs or know others who do
hasn't declined significantly in several years, Boyle said.

"We weren't seeing a dip in the perception of alcohol and drugs used,"
said Boyle, who took over the district's top job July 1 but has worked
in it 15 years. "We're looking at this whole thing, and we want to
give our students another reason to say 'no,' where they might be
tempted to try some illegal substance."

The drug policy, if approved, would affect about 280 student athletes
at Walton-Verona or about half the student body, Boyle said.

Students would be tested as a condition of joining an athletic team
and then randomly thereafter.

Walton-Verona would join several other districts in Northern Kentucky
that test student athletes, including Campbell County, Dayton and
Erlanger-Elsmere.

In 2002 the U.S. Supreme Court approved random drug tests for students
who join competitive after-school activities or teams.