Pubdate: Thu, 12 Jun 2003 Source: Clarion-Ledger, The (MS) Copyright: 2003 The Clarion-Ledger Contact: http://www.clarionledger.com/about/letters.html Website: http://www.clarionledger.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/805 PETAL HIGH PLANS TO ENACT DRUG TESTING Policy Aimed At Students Involved In School Organizations The Associated Press Petal High School students involved in extracurricular activities will face random drug tests this fall. The Petal School Board on Tuesday approved the plan. "This is something we have been wanting to do for several years," Prin-cipal Jack Linton said. "We've been conducting drug tests on all of our athletes for the past 10 years and wanted to extend it to include students who are involved in competitive-based extracurricular activities." The new policy affects students in the band, show choir, chorus, forensics and drama teams, among others, Linton said. Ten percent of whatever the total number of students in the organization is will be randomly tested for drugs, he said. Aside from talking to community members and those on the school board, the issue was addressed at the Shared Decision Council, a forum at the high school that includes teachers, professionals, students and parents, Linton said. "Everyone we spoke to was behind this idea all the way," James Hutto, Petal School District superintendent, said. "The whole idea is not to try and catch a student doing something wrong, but to act as a deterrent." - --- MAP posted-by: Larry Stevens