Pubdate: Tue, 12 Nov 2013
Source: Denver Post (CO)
Copyright: 2013 The Denver Post Corp
Contact:  http://www.denverpost.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/122
Author: Nancy Lofholm

HIGH TIMES IN SCHOOLS

Since Legalization, Reports of Pot in Middle and High Schools Soar.

Grand junction - In two years of work as an undercover officer with a 
drug task force, Mike Dillon encountered plenty of drugs. But nothing 
has surprised him as much as what he has seen in schools lately.

Dillon, who is now a school resource officer with the Mesa County 
Sheriff's Department, said he is seeing more and younger kids 
bringing marijuana to schools, in sometimes-surprising quantities.

"When we have middle school kids show up with a half an ounce, that 
is shocking tome," Dillon said.

The same phenomenon is being reported around Colorado after the 2010 
regulation of medical marijuana dispensaries and the 2012 vote to 
legalize recreational marijuana.

There are no hard numbers yet because school disciplinary statistics 
do not isolate marijuana from general drug violations. But school 
resource officers, counselors, nurses, staff and officials with 
Colorado school safety and disciplinary programs are anecdotally 
reporting an increase in marijuana-related incidents in middle and 
high schools.

"We have seen a sharp rise in drug-related disciplinary actions 
which, anecdotally, from credible sources, is being attributed to the 
changing social norms surrounding marijuana," said Janelle Krueger. 
Krueger is the program manager for Expelled and At-Risk Student 
Services for the Colorado Department of Education and also a longtime 
adviser to the Colorado Association of School Resource Officers.

Krueger said school officials believe the jump is linked to the 
message that legalization (even though it is still prohibited for 
anyone under 21) is sending to kids: that marijuana is a medicine and 
a safe and accepted recreational activity. It is also believed to be 
more available.

Marijuana that parents or other adults might have kept hidden in the 
past may now be left in the open, where it is easier for kids to dip 
into it to sell, use or, in some cases, simply to show off, said 
school officials and law enforcement.

"They just want to be cool," said Dillon of some of the younger 
students he has seen with pot at school.

The best quantifiable evidence the state has yet to indicate that 
marijuana is a significantly growing problem in schools comes from 
the 2012-13 report that documents why 720 students were expelled from 
public schools across Colorado.

For the first time, marijuana was separated from other drugs when 
school officials were asked to identify the reason for students' 
expulsions. Marijuana came in first. It was listed as being a reason 
for 32 percent of expulsions.

National statistics also point to marijuana being more prevalent in schools.

The National Institute of Drug Abuse found that marijuana use has 
climbed among 10th- and 12th-graders nationally, while the use of 
other drugs and alcohol has held steady or declined.

Marijuana is the only drug showing steady increases, the "Monitoring 
the Future" study showed.

Christine Harms, director of the Colorado School Safety Resource 
Center, said the increase of marijuana in schools is not just a 
problem for school resource officers to grapple with. It was 
discussed when school psychologists met in Vail last week.

"They are seeing more incidents of kids smoking and thinking it is a 
safe thing to do. More kids are saying they are getting it from their 
parents," Harms said.

She said counteracting the message legalization is sending to kids is 
especially difficult now because federal grants for drug abuse 
prevention have been cut. She and other officials urge parents to 
take the lead with help from the Speak Now Colorado program that 
guides parents in how to talk about substance abuse.

"They need to know how destructive it is to the adolescent brain," Harms said.
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