Pubdate: Thu, 01 Mar 2012 Source: Daily News, The (Newburyport, MA) Copyright: 2012 Eagle Tribune Publishing Company Contact: http://drugsense.org/url/k3oQxseR Website: http://www.newburyportnews.com Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/693 Author: Lynne Hendricks DRUG USE AT NHS ON RISE School Leaders, Parents Call On Community To Address Problem NEWBURYPORT -- It's a sobering statistic: Approximately 33 percent of Newburyport High School students admit they smoke marijuana, according to a report to be made public later this month by the Beacon Coalition and Newburyport Youth Services. But the findings of the anonymous student survey conducted earlier this year may not surprise some parents and school leaders who are grappling with the knowledge that marijuana has become commonplace within the Newburyport school district. Amid a significant increase in the number of expulsion hearings for drug and alcohol use at Newburyport High School this year and reports of alleged drug activity by some of Newburyport's top students and athletes, several parents and community leaders sounded off about the problem to the School Committee this week. "My kids are recently coming home and saying, in every class - honors and regular classes - there's a kid in every class who's high," said one parent. "I'm appalled, and it has to be talked about." Superintendent Marc Kerble and Newburyport High School Principal Mike Parent want to talk about it, too. They and others spent more than an hour discussing the growing number of drug incidents at Newburyport High during Tuesday night's School Committee meeting. The agenda item was allotted only 20 minutes, but the committee allowed the discussion to be extended. "The purpose of this meeting is to have a discussion of what I think is an elephant in the room," said Kerble, who implored students to take responsibility for their actions and for parents to take responsibility for their kids by checking backpacks and keeping communication lines open. According to figures released by Kerble, the number of expulsion hearings at Newburyport High has risen from three in the 2010-11 school year to 11 already this year. There have been three additional hearings this year for students who have violated conditions placed on them at previous hearings. Of the 11 new hearings, 10 have involved use, possession or consumption of marijuana on school property. Four hearings resulted in the expulsion of the student from the district. Comments by Kerble and Parent Tuesday night also suggest there are a number of students who have been penalized for chemical substance abuse in violation of the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association's policies, which is a separate procedure. "This has been a trying year," Parent said. "There's no getting around it. Sometimes, you feel like you're putting your finger in the dike, running here and running there. And we all have limited resources." Parent said it's not just marijuana use that's being seen at the high school. "I've got many more alcohol problems than I do marijuana," Parent said. "It's pills. Heroin is out there in our community I'm not saying it's in our schools, but it's in the community." Parent echoed Newburyport Youth Services director Andrea Egmont, who also spoke at the meeting, in saying that marijuana use at the school level is as much a community problem as a school one. And while the problem tends to escalate by the time students get to high school, he doesn't believe that's the best time to address it. While high school administrators have worked hard to crack down on students leaving campus or going out to their cars to engage in illegal activity, Parent said more has to be done in kindergarten through grade 8 to stem the tide of teens taking drugs when they get to the secondary school. "You can't start (educating them as) freshmen in high school," he said. "It can't be resolved by high school administrators. It can't be resolved by just this meeting here." Egmont urged community members to attend a forum on Thursday, March 22, at 6:30 p.m. at City Hall that will take a closer look at the results of the student survey and feature an expanded dialogue. "This is not new," Egmont said of the problem. "Kids have been smoking pot for a long time." Egmont cited the state Legislature's 2009 decision to relax marijuana possession laws, effectively decriminalizing possession of a small amount of marijuana, as having a significant effect on the rise in student use. "It sends a strong message to young people," Egmont said. "It's a shifting culture." The good news is that unlike many communities, Newburyport has groups in place, like the Beacon Coalition and Youth Services, that are focused on working with local youths to minimize at-risk behaviors through a variety of programs, retreats and outreach campaigns, Egmont said. She reminded the committee that her arrival in the city was preceded by several high-profile and tragic events involving local teens. She said that since that time, she and others have made significant headway forming a bridge between adults and stressed-out teens. "There's more to it than how many kids are getting expelled," she said. School Committee member Steve Cole suggested that the high school revisit its Clipper Compass student policy manual and rewrite the section regarding first-time drug offenses to require violators to undergo some type of assessment to determine if they need treatment. He said that this type of restorative justice, which places the burden of cost on parents or a local organization like the Beacon Coalition, would ensure kids don't go underground with their drug usage. Cole and fellow committee member Bruce Menin argued that taking everything away from a student caught in the act and other zero-tolerance policies do not help the individual or the problem. "One of the things (zero tolerance) does is it breaks the relationship between adults and kids," Menin said. "The rate of recidivism data on zero tolerance shows suspension correlates with another suspension." 2011/2012 expulsion hearings One student expelled for one year for possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia and vandalism. One student expelled for one year for possession of drug paraphernalia, consumption and vandalism One student expelled for one year for assault on a staff member One student expelled for 45 days for consumption/possession of marijuana and a knife; returned to school for second semester with conditions Two students returned to school on conditions/probation for consumption of marijuana on school property Two students returned to school on conditions/probation for possession of marijuana on school property Two students returned to school on conditions/probation for possession of marijuana on a school trip One student facing felony drug charges; future to be determined Three students' expulsion hearings reopened after violating the conditions of their return to school Source: Superintendent Marc Kerble - --- MAP posted-by: Keith Brilhart