CHAPEL HILL -- The Chapel Hill-Carrboro school district's approach to substance abuse will soon be shaped into one unified policy rather the current hodgepodge of punishments that vary by the school.

A draft proposal would give middle school offenders a clean slate when entering high school and steer kids toward in-school counseling instead of out-of-school suspension. Though more would be done to root out problems -- more drug-sniffing dogs, better surveillance of campus haunts -- the staff-recommended plan favors mediation rather than punishment in many cases.

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CHAPEL HILL -- The Chapel Hill-Carrboro school district's approach to substance abuse will soon be shaped into one, unified policy, instead of the current hodgepodge of punishments that vary by school.

Under a draft policy, more would be done to root out problems -- including more drug-sniffing dogs and better surveillance of campus haunts -- though the plan favors mediation rather than punishment in many cases. With the school board's blessing, it would give middle school offenders a clean slate when entering high school and steer kids away from out-of-school suspensions.

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A group of former users and parents wants pharmacies to make the drugs harder to obtain by putting them behind counters.

CHAPEL HILL -- There's an extremely prevalent drug in Chapel Hill called dextromethorphan, or DXM. It produces a woozy, hallucinogenic effect. It doesn't show up on most drug tests and it's relatively cheap.

It's also available in legal, bar-coded products, sold on grocery store shelves alongside mouthwash and body soap.

"When it kicked in, it was like, 'Oh my god,' like I've been drinking and smoking all day," said Jordan, 17, describing his first DXM experience at the age of 14. "I felt so messed up."

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