SCIENCE-FAIR POT PROJECT CAUSES CONSTERNATION AT JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL

SANTA CRUZ -- Science projects are supposed to give kids the chance to
explore the world.

But a 13-year-old Mission Hill Junior High School seventh-grader discovered
the limits of scientific inquiry this week when she tried to enter the
school science fair with a project on medical marijuana.

The girl was permitted to present her report, titled "Mary Jane for Pain,"
to classmates Thursday, but school officials quickly seized props --
including a marijuana-laced muffin and a spray bottle of pot-steeped
rubbing alcohol.

They haven't decided whether she'll be allowed to display her research
Wednesday when judges from UC Santa Cruz and the NASA/Ames Research Lab
award prizes.

"I'm going to have to take a look at the science to see if it fits the
criteria," Principal Cathy Stefanki-Iglesias said. "I'm not so convinced it
does at the moment."

Stefanki-Iglesias said she planned to gather more information about science
fair guidelines and decide this weekend whether the research should be
placed among more traditional science projects like the analysis of
different types of airplane wings or the impact of X-rays on seeds.

The principal's quandary isn't unique. When California voters passed
Proposition 215 in 1996, legalizing marijuana for medicinal use, local
governments wrestled with implementation -- a job complicated by the
refusal of federal authorities to accept the state law.

Joe Morris, the girl's father, said he understands educator's concerns
about unresolved legal issues. But if the school wasn't going to allow the
project, it should have been nipped in the bud. Instead, his daughter was
given clearance to study the issue under the category of social sciences
about four months ago by a teacher who was filling in while the regular
teacher was on maternity leave.

His daughter worked hard on the project, Morris said, researching the
history of medical use of marijuana, checking out library books and
surveying patients who use the drug to alleviate the symptoms of their
illnesses. She analyzed the information, and graphed results of the survey.

The project in no way condoned recreational use of marijuana, he said.

"The entire premise was people who have prescriptions," Morris said.

His daughter has been embarrassed by the negative reception, he said. He
thinks it would be a violation of her civil rights not to allow the project
to be presented to judges.

"Do constitutional rights kick in at age 18?" he asked. "Don't children
have constitutional rights? In a way it's censorship, and that's not
acceptable."

Valerie Corral, executive director and founder of the Wo/Men's Alliance for
Medical Marijuana, a Santa Cruz group that provides marijuana to patients
with prescriptions, agreed.

"With our civil liberties being eroded, we want our children to be able to
ask questions and be answered honestly," she said.

It's important to teach children to recognize the difference between
medicinal and recreational use, Corral added.

The girl's interest in the topic was sparked by an aunt who serves as
caregiver for a friend seriously ill with cancer and is an alliance
volunteer, Corral said.

The 13-year-old understands the difference, said Corral, who listened in on
some of the interviews the girl conducted as part of her research.

"This is not something she just grabbed out of the air," Corral said. "This
young girl sees what most young girls don't see. She sees a friend of the
family very ill. There's no confusion for her. ... She's not talking about
drugs. She's talking about illness."

But it was "very inappropriate" for the father and aunt to allow the girl
to take their friend's prescriptive pot to school, Corral said. She added,
though, that she believes they acted in good faith, and felt they had taken
precautions to ensure the marijuana products didn't fall into the hands of
students.

The aunt placed the muffin in a plastic bag with a note explaining the
contents and its purpose as a prop, and she escorted the girl to and from
school. Morris called the school to let them know his daughter would be
bringing the props.

"Any good science project has props," he said.

The idea of the props was to show medical marijuana isn't about people
sitting around smoking pot. But he conceded he made "a bad call."

"I should have used better judgment," Morris said.

Morris appreciates how school officials handled that aspect of the project,
returning the items to him rather than calling law enforcement.