RANDOM DRUG TESTING FOR ATHLETES PROTECTS UNIVERSITY, STUDENTS

UTC does not have a drug testing policy for students, despite rumors
to the contrary. However, the athletics department has a random drug
testing policy for students participating in university sports,
according to athletic department officials.

Jeffery Burgin, the associate dean of students and director of
multicultural affairs, tried to clear up confusion concerning the
university's policy of student drug testing.

"The athletic department has a drug testing policy as it relates to
the NCAA but the university does not have a policy of randomly drug
testing its students," Burgin said.

Todd Bullard, the head athletic trainer, described the athletic
department's policy of random drug testing.

"We do randomized urinalysis on student athletes with no shape or
form going into deciding who we pick to get tested," Bullard said.
"We try to pick anywhere from ten to fifteen athletes a month to
adhere to a policy that we have created. All of the testing is done
in-house, and then we send it to a specialized lab in Minnesota that
gives us a great price."

"We will take them off the practice field and will then have a
tester, a witness and the athlete," said Bullard. "We do have to
watch the athlete urinate, which is not fun. This is to make sure
that there is no way of cheating on the drug test."

Rick Hart, athletic director, said, "We do this in addition to
mandated testing from the NCAA and our methods go above and beyond
what they require."

Bullard said: "The NCAA comes in and tests once a year for various
sports, and they look mainly for steroids and other performance
enhancing drugs. In addition to this we test monthly and look for a
variety of things including recreational drugs."

These tests are done monthly and without warning during morning
weight lifting and exercise or immediately after practice.

Bullard said: "This is not an option for athletes with regards to
whether or not they like the policy because the goal is to deter drug
use and not encourage recreational drugs on campus. While this is an
inconvenience to many student athletes, we are also committed to
making sure our athletes steer away from recreational drug use and we
have this policy that is uniform and universal to protect both the
university and the students."

Michelle Faust, a Memphis senior, does not have a problem with the
athletic department's drug testing policy.

"I feel that if the student is receiving something from the
university like a scholarship or participating in a sport then the
student should have to abide by the university's drug policy," Faust
said. "It's like if your parents are providing things for you like
money, shelter and clothes, then you need to live by their rules. The
university has the right to say something like 'If you want to be in
SGA or participate in sports we hold you to a high standard of
representing your school so we may require a drug test.'"

Erika Willson, a Memphis senior, also supports the athletic
department's drug policy.

"I think that it's a good policy because drugs are always a bad
thing," Willson said. "I think it's good because athletes need to be
healthy if they are going to be playing on the field and working out.
I know a couple of athletes that might have been in trouble before
for the same thing so I think that they should go ahead and check all
of the students to make sure that they are clean."

Jon Morgan, a graduate student from Slidell, La., supports the
athletic department's policy but thinks that there is a difference
between using performance enhancing drugs and recreational drugs.

"I don't see a problem with it, and my personal opinion is that in
the athletic arena, I think performance enhancing [drugs] should
always be tested for and should be definitely banned," Morgan said.
"But the recreational [drugs], I think if an athlete can perform on
the field and not have any adverse side effects with whatever their
personal choices are, then they are only hurting themselves with the
recreational drugs.

"I understand that the university has to put on a good face and they
can't have their athletes participating in illegal activity," Morgan
said. "I don't judge people who use recreational drugs and think that
is a personal choice, but performance enhancing drugs I definitely
have a negative opinion of."