Pubdate: Fri, 21 Jul 2006
Source: NewsTribune (LaSalle, IL)
Copyright: 2006 NewsTribune
Contact:  http://www.newstrib.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/3801
Author: Erik Hall
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/testing.htm (Drug Test)

LOCAL SCHOOLS WEIGH IN ON DRUG TESTING

St. Bede Academy assistant principal and athletic  director Bernie
Moore never attended any type of beauty  school. Despite a lack
beautician's training, in the  past four years Moore has turned into a
barber of  sorts.

He has become so popular at the Academy that every  student and
faculty member has visited his office to  get a little off the top.

"I've been looking for one of those red and white  barber poles, and I
swear I tell the kids I'm going to  put it on the wall outside my
door," Moore says. "I  haven't found one yet, but if anyone knows
where one  is, I'd be glad to buy it from them."

Moore receives several visitors each week, but none of  them arrive in
his office trying to improve their  hairdo for the prom. Instead,
Moore is the person in  charge of collecting hair samples from staff
and  students to test for drug use.

"It's a very, very simple process," Moore says. "It's  very
non-invasive to the kids. The girls tend to have,  at least initially,
some great concern because they  have this feeling that you are going
to scalp them and  take this big swatch of hair out of their head, and
  that is not the case at all. It is a very small sample.  On anyone
that has hair length of about an inch and a  half or more, you can
cover it up so it is virtually  undetectable."

Since the 2002-03 school year, St. Bede has tested  every student and
every faculty member each year for  drug use. St. Bede is the only
high school in the area  that tests hair samples for drug use.

The other three area high schools that had drug testing  programs in
place last school year were Bureau Valley,  Princeton and Putnam
County. Both Bureau Valley and  Princeton just completed their fifth
year of drug  testing. Putnam County started its program a year later
in the 2002-03 school year.

"I think every school should do it," says Putnam County  athletic
director Dave Garcia. "I just think in a small  school, sports are so
important. The kids are  identified so much by not just sports, but
all  extracurricular activities that I think having the  possibility
of being excluded from that for smoking a  cigarette or drinking a
beer (is a deterrent). If we  can get those kids to stop it now,
they're more likely  not to do it as they get older."
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