Pubdate: Wed, 02 Aug 2006
Source: Collinsville Herald (IL)
Copyright: 2006 Collinsville Herald
Contact:  http://www.stltoday.com/neighborhoods
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/4073
Author: Mike Terry
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/testing.htm (Drug Testing)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?225 (Students - United States)

DISTRICTS WATCH EXPERIMENTAL DRUG TESTING

Should local school districts attempt to ensure that students who 
participate in extracurricular activities do not use drugs?

And if they do, is it right to single out athletes? Or to randomly select 
students for drug testing?

Those are among the questions local educators are facing this month as they 
prepare for the start of another school year. The questions come in the 
aftermath of a decision last month by the Collinsville School District to 
approve random drug testing for student athletes.

The new policy will begin at Collinsville High School in the fall.

"It's a very interesting concept," said Granite City High School 
Vice-Principal/Athletic Director Jim Greenwald. "It's just like any other 
kind of teaching technique or curriculum. We want to learn as much about it 
as possible, and I'm anxious to see how it pans out."

The topic has also been discussed in the Triad and Edwardsville school 
districts. Educators in all of the districts want to discourage drug use, 
but none other than Collinsville's -- have so far gone as far as approving 
drug testing.

Greenwald said district officials in Granite have had only informal 
conversation on the topic so far, mostly since Major League Baseball made 
steroid use a hot-button issue in the media.

GCHS does not currently have an official drug testing policy unless a 
student first gets caught using an illegal substance. In that case, 
mandatory testing does kick in and the student is put into a special 
program where they are educated on making better choices, the correct way 
to train and on the proper use of supplements.

For things like alcohol, marijuana, tobacco and other illegal drugs, the 
Granite City School District simply asks its students to abide by a basic 
code of conduct policy.

"If we find that students are involved, there are some pretty serious steps 
that take place," Greenwald said. "Our goal, though, is not to have them 
kicked out of sports for the rest of their career. Instead, we want to put 
them in a program where they are taught that what they are doing is illegal 
and nothing good can come of this. Our goal is to make sure it won't happen 
again."

Triad also has a code of conduct form pledging to be drug, tobacco and 
alcohol free, which requires the signature of both students and parents. 
Anyone caught breaking the code is normally suspended for a few days, while 
repeat offenders risk being suspended for a full season. That suspension 
could be reduced through testing and counseling.

District officials in Troy first discussed random drug testing nearly three 
years ago, but eventually decided not to go ahead with it.

"We have considered it," said Triad High School Principal Robert Sudhoff. 
"We looked at the pros and cons and just didn't think we were set up to do 
it. There are some good things about testing, but right now, for us, there 
are more cons for it."

One of the main factors in that decision was the cost.

Under Collinsville's program, which is paid for through the athletic fund, 
tests are expected to cost between $25 and $35 each. A total of 48 randomly 
selected student athletes are scheduled to be tested each school year.

The program was proposed by CHS Athletic Director Bob Hollingshead as a way 
of "preventing and protecting" students against drugs.

Hollingshead said that in developing the program, he was looking at another 
way to give students at CHS an "out" against peer pressure when it comes to 
doing drugs or drinking.

Although Hollingshead said he's not aware of a drug problem at CHS, he said 
he's "not going to be blind about it."

"I'm sure there are students who use drugs," he said. "Look at our society, 
look at other schools from the very rich to very poor. You never know."

He called the plan a measure to prevent drug use.

"With all this emphasis on being the best, you always hear of athletes who 
take steroids and end up dying at an early age," Hollingshead said. "Why 
shouldn't we reach out and try to stop them?"

He said he also hopes the program will give high school students an excuse 
to "just say no."

Critics of the plan question the accuracy of the drug tests, among other 
things.

According to Sudhoff, there were also questions about how secure and 
accurate the test results were, as well as who would be subject to be 
tested if it would just for athletes or if it would include all 
extra-curricular activities or even the general student population.

"Then there were questions about what kinds of drugs you would be testing 
for," he said. "There are some that you can't, such as alcohol."

Along with all of the questions the district had, the issue also had been 
hotly debated among Illinois and national lawmakers.

"It was before the courts at the time, and we didn't want to be a lightning 
rod," said Triad Superintendent Dr. Michael Johnson. "We know that we have 
some students that use (drugs). But we don't believe we have a problem to 
the extent that we need to take such a drastic step."

The U.S. Supreme Court upheld drug testing for student athletes in a 1995 
case. Three years later, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeal stated that 
students in Illinois, Wisconsin and Indiana who participate in non-athletic 
extracurricular activities could also be randomly tested for drugs.

In Edwardsville, Superintendent Dr. Ed Hightower said the district would 
make its own decision on the topic and would not look towards 
Collinsville's success or failure as a basis on whether to implement its 
own policy.

"Our board's stance on drugs has been proactive and stern, by educating in 
a preventative fashion," he said. "Whether they are in athletics, in the 
band, chess club or National Honor Society, we take steps to ensure that 
all students understand that using any kind of substance that alters or 
enhances performance will not be tolerated."

Over the last academic year, Edwardsville sent home information to parents 
about steroids and ways to spot symptoms in their teenagers. School coaches 
and athletic directors also took time to speak about the subject with the 
students themselves.

Whether their school districts have implemented official testing policies 
or not, administrators recognized that drugs and alcohol are still 
potential problems in any school district.

And all of them say they consider it important, both in the classroom and 
at home, to do whatever possible to eliminate that problem.

"Our students are a representative of the general population," said 
Sudhoff. "We are not ignoring or denying that we may have students that use 
alcohol, tobacco or illegal drugs. If there are parents who are concerned 
about their kids possibly using them, I would recommend that they get their 
own screening test done through a family physician."
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom