15 SUSPENDED OVER DRUG USE AWAY FROM SCHOOL

In what is believed to be an unprecedented attack on student drug use,
Orchard Park High School has suspended 15 teenagers since spring break.

But the students weren't using illicit drugs in school.

Instead, most of those suspended were at home or elsewhere off school
grounds when they used drugs, primarily marijuana. And some of them weren't
using drugs at all, but were with students who were.

Superintendent Charles L. Stoddart acknowledged the situation was highly
unusual. But he said the parents, in all cases, supported the district's
decision.

"The parents, each and every one of them, were OK with it. They said,
"Thank you,' " Stoddart said. "This is not the Spanish Inquisition. We are
here to help students, not hurt them."

Stoddart said the district has been punishing students for using drugs even
outside school for about a decade. But he said this was the largest number
of such suspensions ever.

It began April 8, the day students returned from spring break, Stoddart said.

One student reported to high school principals that students were smoking
marijuana "at a barn down the street," Stoddart said. Those students, who
were sophomores, were questioned and admitted what they had done, he said.

The next day, a ninth-grade girl told one of the principals that fellow
students had put a packet of marijuana in her book. Those girls were
brought in. Stoddart said they admitted it, and also told officials about
several other students they knew who smoked marijuana at home.

"It continued to broaden," Stoddart said of the investigation, which is
continuing.

In all, he said, high school officials questioned about 24 students. Most
were freshmen or sophomores, and all had been named by other students.

Most students received one-or two-day suspensions, which will be wiped off
their school records at the end of the school year, Stoddart said.

Orchard Park police were also notified, but do not plan to investigate or
file charges, said Capt. Michael Sherry. "We were made aware that there was
an internal investigation, but that is the scope of our involvement,"
Sherry said.

Though districts such as Buffalo and West Seneca said they do not act
against students for activities that occur off school grounds, Stoddart
said he felt the district's action was necessary.

Few students bring drugs to school because they know they'll get caught, he
said. It's easier not to get caught at someone's home because so many
students come back to empty homes after school, he said.

"Parents are entitled to know what we are hearing (from students),"
Stoddart said. "Stuff that happens in the neighborhoods rolls into the
schools. And we want to stop it."