Support for Creating a Community Dialogue to Discuss Nonpunitive Student Drug Testing for Early Intervention

                                                                 NDD.029.a07

WHEREAS, the identification at an early stage of school age children who are involved with substance abuse is important to effective treatment and also reduces risks to their health and ability to learn; and

WHEREAS, 51 percent of high school and 20 percent of middle school students say they attend a school where drugs are used, kept ,or sold (National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University, August 2006: National Survey of American Attitudes on Substance Abuse XI, Teen and Parents); and

WHEREAS, of those students who reported carrying a gun to school, 70.6 percent report using liquor, 63.9 percent report using marijuana, 39.9 percent report using cocaine, and 36.8 percent report using crystal meth in the past year (Pride Surveys Report: 2005-2006 National Summary 3.13 Carrying a Gun to School); and

WHEREAS, the U.S. Supreme Court in the case of Board of Education of Independent School District No. 92 of Pottawatomie County et al. v Earls et al., 536 U.S. 822 (2002) upheld a drug-testing program for students involved in competitive extracurricular activities; and

WHEREAS, the expectation that students may be randomly tested is enough to make some students stop using drugs or never start in the first place(What You Need to Know About Drug Testing in Schools, Office of National Drug Control Policy, 2002, pg 4); and

WHEREAS, random drug testing offers students a good excuse to say no to peer pressure to use drugs, and a convenient out given the consequences of a positive drug test to participating in extracurricular activities.(What You Need to Know about Drug Testing in Schools, Office of National Drug Control Policy, 2002, pg 4); and

WHEREAS, schools that have implemented nondisciplinary student drug testing programs have found the programs to be effective in reducing drug use and improving the learning environment for all students. (Institute for Behavior and Health, Inc., Preliminary Study of Student Drug Testing Programs: for the U.S. Department of Education, August 2002. DuPont, Robert L. M.D., et al.); and

WHEREAS, a 2003 survey of Indiana high school principals found that 94 percent believed the random drug-testing policy to be effective in discouraging drug and alcohol use by students. (McKinney, Joseph R., J.D., Ed. D The Effectiveness of Random Drug Testing Programs: A Statewide Follow-up Study,2003); and WHEREAS, in 2005 the state of New Jersey enacted legislation authorizing the adoption of substance abuse testing policies in public school districts; and

WHEREAS, in 2003 the Virginia Assembly passed legislation modifying the Code of Virginia relating to schools to include provisions for student drug-testing programs; and

WHEREAS, the author of a 2005 follow-up survey of Indiana high school principals concluded that random student drug testing (RSDT) programs are effective in deterring, reducing, and detecting illegal drug use among students.(McKinney, Joseph R., J.D., Ed. D., Dept. of Educational Leadership, Ball State Univ., The Effectiveness and Legality of Random Student Drug Testing Programs Revisited,2006); and

WHEREAS, the National District Attorneys Association (NDAA) supports school drug-testing programs as effective drug and crime prevention strategies. The NDAA encourages community collaboration among district attorneys, schools, law enforcement agencies, drug prevention and treatment agencies, and other stakeholders to offer school-based drug testing and assistance programs that discourage drug use among youth prior to the need for law enforcement involvement. Drug testing programs should be part of a comprehensive school-based approach to reduce drug use, rather than a stand-alone strategy.(National District Attorneys Association, Policy Positions on Drug Control and Enforcement, Adopted March 20, 2004, available at www.ndaa-apri.org); and

WHEREAS, schools that have implemented non-disciplinary student drug testing programs have reported various successful outcomes including a decrease in student drug use and student disciplinary problems. (Preliminary Study of Student Drug Testing Programs for the U.S. Department of Education, August 2002); now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED that the International Association of Chiefs of Police duly assembled at its 114th Annual Conference in New Orleans, Louisiana, encourages all law enforcement agencies to work with their educational, health, and community leaders to discuss if student drug testing is an appropriate part of a comprehensive approach to reduce drug abuse