STUDENTS LEARN KEY MESSAGES ABOUT DRUGS, INTERNET

It choked him up to talk about his son's suicide last year but Bill
Bailey's message to Kenner Collegiate students yesterday was clear --
drugs do kill.

Bailey, who spent 24 years as an educator, was a keynote speaker
yesterday afternoon as the two-day conference on safe schools and
anti-bullying wrapped up.

The conference, which targeted Grade 9 students at Crestwood Secondary
School and Kenner Collegiate, was a pilot project held in partnership
with city police, Peterborough County OPP, the Ministry of Child and
Youth Services, the John Howard Society and Microsoft.

Presentations and workshops tackled issues including peer pressure,
bullying, drugs and alcohol and the dangers of Internet technology.

Bailey's message tugged at the heartstrings, bringing a few students
to tears as he talked about the death of his son Adam, a former Adam
Scott Collegiate student.

He told students how his son's troubles began when he started casually
smoking marijuana.

"Adam and I discussed drug use and his favourite words were 'Dad, I do
smoke pot and I have it under control,'" Bailey said.

Marijuana was a gateway drug for Adam as he began experimenting with
harder drugs, Bailey said.

It was a mixture of those drugs, a beating he took from a drug dealer
he owed money to and some other personal problems that drove Adam to
take his own life, Bailey said.

"Adam was found April 19 last year hanging from my garage. He died
April 21," Bailey said.

It was visibly hard for Bailey to tell his story, but he said it was
therapeutic to know his message could keep another young teen from
going down the same path.

"I'm talking here because I want to make a difference," he said. "I
can't change the history that has happened in my life, but if there's
any part of my story that will help someone else, then that's worth it
and I'm recovering."

Another workshop yesterday explored the dangers of Internet sites such
as Facebook, MySpace and MSN.

Students need to know what they do online can be traced and
cyber-bullying has consequences, city police high school liaison
office Marc Habgood said.

"We're building awareness here that everything you do online is
traceable and you can be held accountable," Habgood said.

Divulging too much information can also leave students vulnerable to
online predators, Habgood said.

Students learned how Trojan horse software can give a person control
of someone's personal computer camera and a front-row view of their
bedroom.

They were shown how images of themselves posted on Facebook could be
edited in Photoshop and depict them in compromising situations.

With participation prizes such as iPods and free pizzas, students
really took advantage of the two-day conference, Kenner Collegiate
vice-principal Melanie Foulkes said.

"When the kids come into Grade 9 now, they know what's available in
the community and we can make their transition into high school a
little easier," she said.

Foulkes said she hopes both the public and Catholic school boards pick
up the pilot program next year so all Grade 9 students in the city can
benefit from it.