LOCAL D.A.R.E. PROGRAM NEEDS UPDATE

Since its inception in 1983 by the Los Angeles Police Department, the Drug
Abuse Resistance Education program has become the signature project in
teaching kids about the dangers of drugs and alcohol.

The program -- taught in more than 80 percent of the country's school
districts -- not only serves as a prevention tool, but it also helps boost
self-esteem and shows children that law enforcement officers are friendly
and approachable.

Locally, dedicated officers at the Owensboro police and Daviess County
sheriff's departments put their hearts into seeing that kids don't stray
from the right path. Their commitment and dedication are unquestionable and
should be commended.

Despite these efforts, however, there are legitimate concerns about the
program's effectiveness. Local law enforcement and school officials must
not fall into the trap of confusing the feel-good nature of the program
with actual success.

It would be unrealistic to think that parents or others in the community
would complain about getting a group of students in an auditorium to cheer
"Just Say No" to drugs. Few, if any, would say such rallies are anything
but positive.

Yet, there is significant evidence to suggest that such an approach has
little impact on reducing drug and alcohol use among young people.

In recent years, the surgeon general and the National Academy of Sciences
have suggested the program's curriculum has become outdated. A 10-year
study at the University of Kentucky showed D.A.R.E. had lost all effects by
the time students reached age 20. A similar study at the University of
Illinois lowered the bar further, saying any impression the program made
was gone by a student's senior year.

In response, the national D.A.R.E. program announced in February 2001 that
it had developed a new curriculum aimed at older children with a focus on
changing social norms. Seventh-graders would become the primary target
audience, with a support program added in the ninth grade.

Among the many perceived benefits of such changes, the most crucial is
creating a curriculum that students can use as they approach an age where
drugs and alcohol become a more serious temptation.

But more than a year after such changes were recommended, no significant
changes have been made locally. Those changes are expected to be
implemented in the fall of 2003, and local officials should follow through
with such plans.

The national D.A.R.E. program receives about $1.7 million a year from the
Department of Justice and another $215 million in indirect benefits from
police departments. That's a substantial chunk of the prevention pie to be
spent on a program that isn't as effective as it could be.

Few things are as important as prevention programs for young people, and
it's imperative that updates to D.A.R.E. are made locally to ensure that
our limited resources produce maximum results.