MAYBE TECUMSEH WAS RIGHT

TECUMSEH public schools went to the U.S. Supreme Court to win the right to
test any student participating in a school-related activity for drug use.
Is it the right policy for Tecumseh? Apparently so. Is it the right policy
for every school district? Probably not. But here's the larger question: Is
drug testing in high schools effective? If the results of a small Oregon
study are any indication, the answer is yes.

The Tecumseh case, decided last summer by the high court, was in the news
again this week, serving as a bit of vindication for the Pottawatomie
County district that was derided in some circles for its hard-nosed
attitude toward drugs in its schools.

In Oregon, a study conducted by Oregon Health and Sciences University
showed that athletes at a high school who were subject to random testing
were about a fourth as likely to report using drugs as their peers at a
similar school who weren't tested. The athletes being tested also reported
only a third as likely to use performance- enhancing substances like
steroids than athletes at the other school not tested.

Tecumseh prevailed in testing not only its athletes, but others who
participate in other activities. We applauded Tecumseh's tenacity in taking
the issue to the Supreme Court after its policy was overturned in a lower
court, even though its policy hardly is grist for copycats. Nationwide only
5 percent of school districts require athletes to submit to a drug test.
Even fewer, just 2 percent, require drug testing of other students.

But the results of the Oregon study might prompt districts that don't
conduct random tests to consider doing so.