TASK FORCE PLANS COMMUNITY MEETING ON TEEN SUBSTANCE ABUSE

The desire of parents, school administrators and town leaders to address the
issue of teen drinking and drug use won't be a success without youth
involvement.

That's why the town of Los Gatos has embarked on a mission to make sure that
the voices of the young are heard and that both adults and youths in the
community are on the same page about substance abuse.

"The young people of this community must be involved and must buy into
this," Councilman Steve Glickman said at the last council meeting. "I'm
confident that the group will win the cooperation of the young."

Los Gatos High School Principal Trudy McCulloch first suggested to the
town's police chief and mayor that a group meet to identify prevalent issues
facing youth in regard to drinking and drug use and find a solution to
combat this trend. A group of 20 administrators, town officials, civic
leaders, therapists, parents and students have met twice this month, with
plans to bring their discussions to the public for a future town-wide
community meeting.

"It's clear that residents of the town of Los Gatos are committed to
ensuring the safety of their youths, and we'll be working to do what we
can," said Police Chief Scott Seaman. Seaman is also scheduled to speak on
this issue at a West Valley Bar Association luncheon at noon on Jan. 24. The
luncheon will be held at the Hobee's restaurant in the Pruneyard Shopping
Center in Campbell. (For more information, contact Marcia Kaplan at
408.867.3355.)

While the adults in the community have initiated this particular discussion,
students at Los Gatos High have found other ways to address the issue of
drunken driving, which came to a forefront recently with the death of
18-year-old Eric Quesada over Thanksgiving weekend. Quesada was in a car
that crashed into a telephone pole off Hicks Road. The driver, a 16-year-old
Los Gatos High student, was found to be intoxicated and may face charges of
gross vehicular manslaughter.

According to Cindy Ranii, superintendent for the Los Gatos­Saratoga High
School District, some of Quesada's friends have created posters encouraging
others to not drink and drive. A "Passion in Music" scholarship fund for Los
Gatos High school students has been established in Quesada's memory.

The town is facing a "complex social and cultural issue," Ranii said. Some
youngsters consider it a norm to party and drink on weekends, and it's a
norm for some parents to leave their high school kids alone while they go
away on vacation, she said.

"If a subculture has certain norms, then it's easy for people to not even
notice them," Ranii said. "Maybe some of those norms need to be examined and
put under the light of day. Cultural norms can change, but it's a
complicated process."