CURBING TEEN DRUG USE

School and community involvement may be the key to decreasing alcohol and
drug abuse among teenagers, according to survey results released earlier
this week.

Local experts and teen-agers agreed with a new survey showing that school,
religion and adult involvement are effective in keeping youths away from
illegal substances.

According to the study - done by Pride Surveys, which measures the
effectiveness of White House drug policy - 37 percent of 12th-graders used
an illicit drug in the past year. For the five years before that, the
number remained a constant 41 percent.

The study - based on questionnaires given anonymously to more than 100,000
high school students in 21 states - also showed that teen-agers who
participate in after-school activities, go to church and communicate with
teachers are less likely to use drugs and alcohol.

The connection between the two is apparent locally, said Betty Currier,
executive director of LEAF Council on Alcohol and Addictions in
Cooperstown, which provides substance-abuse help.

"It supports what we know, what research shows, what we are emphasizing,"
she said. "Those that are bonded to schools ... bonded to families do show
fewer problems."

But more important than one-year statistics, Currier said, are
trend-showing numbers over several years.

"We may see blips on the screen between now and then," she said. "You can
do surveys, and you can see the ups and downs, but little can be done if
you don't look at trends over time."

Currier said she couldn't determine if teen-age drug and alcohol use has
decreased locally over the past year.

LEAF officials plan to perform a needs assessment this fall, she said, that
could determine if numbers have gone down.

The survey, however, found that the percentages of students who used
alcohol - 65 percent - or smoked cigarettes - 36 percent - in the previous
year were the lowest in the 15-year history of Pride Surveys.

But teen-agers thought otherwise.

"It's out there, " said Maryland state resident Patrick O'Neill. "There's a
lot of alcohol."

O'Neill, 18, and his friend, 17-year-old Long Island resident Dennis Regas,
said they were in the area vacationing at Gilbert Lake Thursday.

Although they couldn't speak for years past, they said many teen-agers they
know drink.

"I think everybody drinks as much as any time," Regas said.

In addition, Regas said teachers telling students not to drink may have the
opposite effect.

"Adults telling you stuff like that just makes teen-agers want to do the
opposite," he said.

The survey found otherwise.

Among students whose teachers warned them away from drugs, 15 percent did
not listen. Of those who were not warned, 32 percent used drugs.

The survey also found that kids who participate in extracurricular
activities may also be less likely to use drugs and alcohol. About 17
percent of youths who participated in activities admitted to using illicit
drugs, compared to 32 percent who didn't participate.

"You're doing things with your time," Roxbury resident Cathy Shuman, 21,
said. "You're meeting people other than partiers."

Her sister, 20-year-old Beth, said participation in sports may have a
different reason for preventing drug abuse.

"In high school, they'd do random drug tests on athletes," she said. "If
you used drugs, you'd be kicked off the team."

Religion also contributed, with only 13 percent of kids who attended
religious services "a lot" using drugs. Of those who "never" attended, 36
percent used drugs.

After-school activities, church and teacher involvement can all work to
support healthy behaviors among teen-agers, Currier said.

Pride officials attribute the declining numbers partially to the focus on
family that happened after Sept. 11.

"Following 9/11, Americans seemed to refocus on family, community,
spirituality and nation," said survey author Thomas J. Gleaton. "That
renewed awareness shows up in the data."

But Currier said numbers will only remain down if emphasis on family continues.

"Things tend to happen, and people address the issue, and say, 'We've
addressed something, we've made a change'," she said. "But then the old
ways come back again, and the cycle begins."