A DARE-ING SUCCESS: OFFICIALS SAY DRUG AWARENESS PROGRAM VALUABLE TO SCHOOLS

JACKSON COUNTY -- It's hard to prove it works, but school administrators
and police departments say the DARE -- Drug Awareness and Resistance
Education -- program is a valuable asset to the curriculum.

The federal No Child Left Behind Act requires states to spend money only on
programs that can be proven effective. According to the Illinois Criminal
Justice Information Authority, in some states, that could create a funding
issue for the program.

In Illinois, funding for DARE materials has already been eliminated. In
Southern Illinois, authorities and school administrators are cooperating to
keep the program in the schools -- even though quantifying its success is
not easy, or even possible, to do.

Jackson County Deputy Mark Wilson teaches the program in four schools in
the county. He said he may not be able to measure the success of the
program, but when former students voluntarily come back to act as mentors
for current DARE classes, he counts that as an achievement.

The Carbondale Police Department's DARE officer, Randy Mathis, said he
believes the program makes enough of a positive difference to justify
keeping it in the curriculum.

The program has always addressed such topics as self-esteem, peer pressure,
health and decision-making. Beginning this fall, area DARE officers will
implement a new DARE program that puts more emphasis on student involvement
by making the DARE officer more discussion leader than lecturer. It also
shortens the class from 17 weeks to 10 weeks.

Though none of the officers has had a chance to see how the course works in
practice, several have recently completed the new training required for
certification. So far, they are optimistic about the new structure.

For one thing, a shorter course makes scheduling easier, both on the school
and for the department.

According to its own press, the new DARE is also based on proven "refusal
strategies" -- which would help it fit the No Child Left Behind mandate.

One aspect the DARE officers emphasize is the positive interaction between
a uniformed police officer and children at the "inquisitive age" of fifth
and sixth grade.

"Kids get to see I'm nobody to be scared of," Wilson said. "We do create a
bond. I get very attached to them."

"I don't think there is any way to quantify (the success of the program),"
Mathis said. "The only thing I can quantify is the positive reaction of the
kids and parents I come in contact with."

In Williamson County, the Marion Police Department took a year off from
DARE to give its DARE officer a break from teaching.

Police Chief Ron Swafford said the department may pick up with the new DARE
program next year.

"Our problem is manpower within the department," he said. "When you have a
small department like we do, it's hard to spare someone for the training,
and the officer may have duties (conflicting with DARE classroom teaching)."

Swafford said there are other things the police department may do to stay
involved with the schools if the school district and the department opt out
of DARE permanently.

"I don't really like it when I hear people say DARE doesn't work," Wilson
said. "If I didn't believe in this program, I wouldn't be teaching it. I've
had faculty and school administration say to me, 'Can you imagine what it
would be like without DARE?' It isn't the end-all and cure-all, but if we
save one kid from bad decisions, then to me it was worth it."

Wilson said he emphasizes consequences, and uses examples from his patrol
duties to reinforce the concept that even a single bad decision "can ruin
your life."

Mathis said it is difficult to know how, case by case, DARE training may
influence a young person's decisions about drugs. However, he agrees that
the program does have intrinsic value.

"We see how it enhances the perception of the police department with these
kids, how it reduces barriers," he said.

Carbondale Elementary School District Superintendent Elizabeth Lewin said
coming up with positive data to satisfy No Child Left Behind isn't a
problem just for DARE, but for other programs as well. She said she is
convinced the program has been "very positive" and the Carbondale Police
Department is "a real good partner" in education.

"With the cooperation of the police department, we are educating our
children with the right information and the right reinforcement -- rather
than just letting them pick up (the information) on the street," Lewin said.

DARE graduations, typically a rite of passage leading to junior high, will
be taking place throughout the area beginning next week. The new curriculum
will begin in most districts in the fall.

"We'll see how it goes," Mathis said. "Then we'll evaluate it at the end of
the year."