DRUG-TESTING PLAN CONCERNS OFFICIAL

School Board Member Questions Why It Should Be Limited To Athletes.

LAKELAND -- Polk County School Board member Brenda Reddout said she has a
number of concerns with a proposal to randomly drug test student athletes.

"There is a risk the district runs," she said. "We know that there are
students who use drugs. We know that there are students in extracurricular
activities beyond sports that use drugs. If we are going to do a program
like this, why isn't it inclusive of all extracurricular activities?"

The policy is in response to a federal grant program that the School
District plans to implement this fall. Student athletes at more than a
dozen high schools, including one private school, would be randomly tested
for recreational drugs.

A similar program was piloted at George Jenkins High School in Lakeland
during the 1990s. The program ended during the 19992000 school year because
of a lack of funds. Then-Principal David Lauer has said that program was
very successful and reduced drug use.

Reddout said the district is assuming that athletes have much more
influence on other students than they actually might have. And she said
there's no empirical data that shows athletes have any higher drug use than
other students.

She also had a concern that the punishments, such as removing a student
from a school team, lie solely in the hands of the principal. The policy
doesn't allow for further administrative appeal. She said such a punishment
can be a much bigger deal than just suspending a student for five or 10 days.

"Being kicked off a team can be a life-altering experience, particularly
for those kids who are tracked in such a way that they may actually get
scholarship money to go on to higher learning," she said.

The drug-testing policy is not set in stone. Parents and even students
still have a chance to voice their opinions on the matter.

"It will be on the agenda for a public hearing in the March 16 meeting,"
said board chairman Jack English.