DISTRICT: NO PLANS TO CHANGE DRUG TEST POLICY

In 2001, the Huntsville ISD Board of Trustees voted against a policy that
would require its students who were involved in extracurricular activities
to have mandatory drug tests. Now, some Montgomery County schools are
considering implementing such a policy.

Willis ISD implemented a no-tolerance drug policy for its students more
than a year ago, and installing a mandatory drug testing policy would help,
said Willis ISD superintendent Brian Zemlicka.

The Willis ISD Board of Trustees will vote next week whether it will
require its students to be tested for drugs.

If approved, the tests will be administered to students between seventh and
12th grade who are involved in extracurricular activities including sports
or clubs.

"The message is not to try to catch kids, but the intent is to give kids an
out," Zemlicka said. "If they are approached and have peer pressure to do
drugs, they will have some support to say 'I can't because I am in this
club and I will get kicked out.'"

If approved, drug testing would be administered to Willis ISD students at
the beginning of the school year and then randomly once a month.

Huntsville ISD superintendent Fred Rush said since its 2001 vote, the board
of trustees has not considered changing its policy on drug testing.

"It would depend on the wishes of the board on whether we would come back
and look at it," he said.

Although drug testing has been successful in other school districts,
Huntsville ISD has no data to support whether drug usage has increased in
the past two years, Rush said.

When it reviewed the possible drug testing policy in 2001, data showed a
little over 8 percent of the total student population used drugs, alcohol
or tobacco. The data came from a HISD-formed drug task force which studied
drug and alcohol use by students.

However, when those findings were presented, board member Brian Smith (now
president of the board) cited a student survey in which 30 percent of the
10th-through 12th-grade students at Huntsville High School surveyed
admitted to using illicit drugs.

The proposed 2001 policy was voted down partly because parents, students
and legal advisors opposed it. In the Oct. 26, 2001 board meeting - when
the vote was made - 15 community members voiced arguments about
implementing the policy.

Board member Kay Douglas said the support of the community was essential to
the success of any plan involving drug testing in HISD.

"This is a community problem that requires a community solution," she said
at the time.

If Huntsville ISD revisits the drug testing policy, the intent would be to
help students, Rush said.

"It would be not to try and catch them, but so they would have a way out to
say no," he said.

Although it does not require its students to be drug tested, Huntsville ISD
helps educate its students about drug usage in other ways. It has a health
education curriculum which reaches students of all grade levels. In
addition, the district will host an anti-drug red ribbon rally later this
month.

Encouraging students to be involved in extracurricular activities also
helps deter drug use, Rush said.

"When kids have idle time on their hands, they are apt to get into
trouble," he said.