NEW DRUG EDUCATION PROGRAM WAITING IN WINGS

DARE Is Expected To Adopt New Method After Evaluation

The drug prevention program that law enforcement officers have
delivered to youngsters nationwide for decades could change
significantly after a University of Akron study concludes this year.

The DARE program started in Los Angeles in 1983 with little, if any,
research to support its curriculum and delivery method. Still, the
program spread nationally and is now taught in every state and 43
countries. Fayette County implemented DARE as a pilot program in 1986,
then as part of all public elementary school curricula the next year.

Researchers at the University of Akron created an evidence-based,
research-driven drug prevention curriculum and delivery method after
receiving a grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

DARE officers have been used to test the curriculum, although the
study is independent of the well-known drug prevention program.

But DARE is expected to adopt this new drug prevention program after
analysis concludes this year. Akron's curriculum is being evaluated in
Detroit, Houston, Los Angeles, New Orleans, Newark and St. Louis with
about 19,000 students followed from seventh through 11th grades.

The new program would be taught to seventh- and ninth-graders, because
research suggests most first-time drug use occurs among students in
the eighth and 10th grades. DARE programs start in the fifth grade.

"Most kids in the fifth grade don't try drugs for the first time,"
said John Carnevale, president of Carnevale Associates, which promotes
awareness of the study.

The new program also uses simulations to promote interaction among
students.

Preliminary results from the study show DARE officers are equal to or
better than teachers in delivering substance abuse prevention
information. And the study has found the curriculum has a significant
impact on students' typical beliefs about drug and alcohol use.

Principal investigator Zili Sloboda noted DARE has a system in place
to quickly train officers and monitor quality of delivery. "Simply
put, there is no comparable national prevention delivery network like
DARE in the U.S."

The study could help all DARE schools become eligible for federal
funding for the program if it's proven effective.

In Kentucky, funding sources for DARE vary.

In Lexington, the police department absorbs most of the cost, while
Fayette County schools help with training officers. In Anderson
County, the sheriff's office pays for everything. In Scott County, the
schools pay for everything, spending about $33,000 last year.