DRUG TESTING PLAN DISCOUNTS RESEARCH

I would like to thank the Advertiser for its well balanced article on the
new drug testing program at Saint James School. Unfortunately, the
administration at Saint James School has chosen to ignore the latest
empirical research on this issue.

The conclusion of the recent study published in the Journal of School
Health (and cited in the article) is that the rate of drug use in schools
with drug testing programs is the same as it is in schools without drug
testing programs. This impressive study, based on 8,000 students at more
than 300 schools, clearly suggests that drug testing is of limited value in
deterring drug use.

Further, those who support drug testing programs should read an article
published in U.S. News and World Report several years ago. According to
this article, students who were hesitant to use drugs because of in-school
drug testing programs simply turned to alcohol. According to one of the
students, "The parties are just as wild, but now they don't have to pay the
consequences.

"Drug testing is the latest fad in education, and private schools in
particular are jumping at the chance to prove they are tough on drugs. As
the Christian Science Monitor pointed out in a recent editorial, "Drug use
among teens remains a serious issue, but parents must not place the
responsibility for drug-free kids at the front door of the school."

Mandatory drug testing is merely one more attempt to take away parental
responsibility.

Brenda Fox
Montgomery