Pubdate: Sat, 29 Jul 2006 Source: Cincinnati Enquirer (OH) Copyright: 2006 The Cincinnati Enquirer Contact: http://enquirer.com/editor/letters.html Website: http://enquirer.com/today/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/86 Author: C.J. Liu Note: C.J. Liu of Sharonville, a graduate of Princeton High School, is majoring at economics at Purdue University. Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/testing.htm (Drug Testing) SCHOOLS CAN'T BARTER STUDENTS' RIGHTS When I first read of Milford High School's plan to drug-test students who participate in extracurricular activities and/or apply for parking permits, I thought Hamilton County Sheriff Simon Leis Jr. must have been elected Milford's superintendent. Nevertheless, I vehemently disagree with the program both on common sense principle and hypothetical legal precedent, respectively. First, on hypothetical legal precedent, the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States guards against search and seizure of property without warrant or probable cause to believe a criminal misdeed has been committed. Here, the U.S. Supreme Court has derived a general and inalienable right to privacy. Now consider this trans-contextual precedent of bartering rights for privileges. If public schools can barter the students' right to privacy off campus in exchange for the privilege of parking on campus, then why can't the state of Ohio barter private citizens' right to privacy in exchange for equally irrelevant adult privileges? Suppose the Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles required a search of an applicant's home and property in order to obtain an Ohio driver's license. Such a program would surely be derided as big government run amok, or perhaps an example of a despotic agency overstepping its intended bounds. For these reasons, I hope we as responsible citizens will never barter our rights in exchange for basic privileges, and neither should we afford such authority to lesser public institutions, including Milford High School. Second, on common sense principle, students who choose to participate in extracurricular activities aren't on the streets. By denying them the opportunity for cohesive community behavior, Milford High School could alienate the students, stunt their chances of being admitted to college and give them more free time to engage in "deviant" social activities. But all these hypothetical consequences aside, I believe the primary concern for the child's welfare, behavior and chemical sobriety should lie with the parent(s), and not the state. By this sentiment, if Milford High School wants to offer optional drug tests at the behest of individual parent(s), that's fine. But in the end, schools are meant for teaching, not proactively policing our youth. - --- MAP posted-by: Richard Lake