MLAS GET OPPOSING VIEWS OF STUDENT VIOLENCE, DRUG USE

McMahon Visits Golden Schools With Student Task Force Committee

The provincial Student Task Force, comprised of three Liberal MLA's,
visited Golden last week to get a first-hand look at the anti-bullying and
anti-violence programs at Golden Secondary School (GSS) and Lady Grey
Elementary School, and to receive public input on the growing problem.

Columbia River-Revelstoke MLA Wendy McMahon, along with Surrey-Green
Timbers MLA Brenda Locke and Vancouver-Burrard MLA Lorne Mayencourt, toured
the schools last Wednesday, (Nov. 13), and got a very good impression of
the schools' programs. The Golden stop was one of 15 communities and 12
schools the task force is visiting on their province-wide tour.

At GSS, the task force met with the leadership class to hear first-hand the
students' perspectives on violence and drug use.

"Our feeling as a group is that it is very different (in Golden) than some
of the other schools we've been to," said McMahon, who added that the
schools "ROCKS" program is precisely the type of behaviour strategy that
seems to be working in other schools. "They're working collaboratively with
teachers and students to make sure there's a sense of community."

At Lady Grey, the task force met with staff to discuss violence in the
school, and to discuss the success of their "SMART" program, similar to
that of GSS' ROCKS.

"For schools that adopt something (such as ROCKS), they can really improve
the situation," said Mayencourt. "It is a different program (than other
schools) but it's the same principle. It includes safety, mutual respect
and teamwork."

For Mayencourt, the key to the success of such anti-violence and anti-drug
programs is buy-in by students, teachers and parents - something Golden
seems to have remarkable success in.

However, the picture the MLA's got at a public hearing following their
visits to the school is quite different, and alarming.

Terry Mobberly is the director of the Golden Family Centre, who was
accompanied by several of his employees to the public hearing. He told the
task force that the centre's integrated approach to addressing the
multi-faceted aspects of drugs and violence among youth is very successful,
but dwindling financial support is threatening their effectiveness.

Linda Elstrom operates the Family Centre's youth drop-in group. In addition
to highlighting the group's success with youth at risk, she also told the
task force that the picture they got at the schools and what is really
happening are not the same.

"You would not believe the people who are doing (drugs)," said Elstrom,
adding that heroin, crystal meth and cocaine are now prevalent among some
students and their parents.

As for weapons, Elstrom said she has also heard from kids of some students
carrying weapons such as knives to school on a regular basis. She
emphasized that programs such as the Family Centre are so limited in
resources that only a few people are working with these children, and that
they can't get the job done.

Mobberly emphasized to the task force that something he calls "up-stream"
prevention, or dealing with these issues at an early age, is the best way
to help the situation, starting with the community and parents. Other
preventative programs such as the "Roots of Empathy" highlighted by Family
Centre worker Rhonda Smith, were demonstrated as useful preventative tools
in early childhood education.

Mobberly urged the task force to view solutions to violence and drug use as
holistic, and reinstate funding for all aspects of such social services,
including child and youth mental health programs.

Mayencourt explained to the people at the open house that the solution is
likely a multi-faceted one, and that their report to the legislature, due
at the end of January, will likely cross the boundaries of different
ministries, and that the Family Centre's concerns will be noted.

It is expected that the task force's report to legislature will be used in
part to set policy and legislation in an effort to reduce violence and drug
use in schools province-wide.