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MISSISSIPPI: N. PIKE MULLS DRUG TESTING
North Pike, Mississippi school trustees put the wheels in motion for a district drug policy Monday night.
"We need to start a dialogue on what we need to do in the district," Superintendent Dr. Ben Cox said.
Citing a drug and drinking online survey North Pike, Mississippi high school students take annually, Cox said, "It does show that some of our kids are doing illicit drugs and drinking alcohol."
Although Cox said the percentages weren't alarming - he didn't have numbers - it was enough to get the drug-testing ball rolling for grades 9 through12. Another factor behind the proposed policy is that other schools in Mississippi are already taking the lead in testing their students.
Cox wants the school board to continue talking about the idea and begin putting together details after careful study. And until a policy is in place, the district will be doing other things to warn kids about the dangers of drinking and driving and using drugs.
"We're going to strengthen our drug awareness and abuse program," Cox said.
Mississippi law officers and others who fight the drug and drinking problem will be invited more often to speak to the student body and at club meetings and drug dogs will make more appearances at the school for searches, Cox said.
The most likely place to start drug-testing, Cox said, is with the athletic program, including cheerleaders and, possibly, band members.
"Athletes are role models, and if kids see them doing it, they might say, 'Hey, if they can do it, so can we,' " Cox said.
One component of the policy will be an advisory board, where high school principal Darryl Brock will meet regularly with a selected group of students.
Cox stressed that "it's not always the bad kids using drugs and alcohol, it cuts across everybody."
The trustees will study policies in place at other Mississippi schools, including the plans at McComb, Mississippi High School and Southwest Mississippi Community College, as guidelines for their own plan.
"We will benefit from districts going in front of us," Cox said.
One rule is already in place: the district can't test the general population - only those who take part in school-sponsored activities. The school can't test just anyone; that would be an invasion of privacy, Cox said..
As board attorney John Gordon Roach said, "extracurricular activities are a privilege; academics is a right."
Questions to be answered include the costs of testing and who will do it, the number of students tested and how often, and what the school's actions will be after a positive test, including mandatory counseling. Cox also wants the policy to include a section that allows parents of students who would not fall into the testing population to be added to the pool.
"Do we want to test all of them in extracurricular activities or do we start with athletics and expand it as we go?" Cox asked. "We need to think about it carefully. We don't need to be in a big rush to do this. We need to really tailor it for North Pike."
"I hope it helps good kids say no to drugs. It will make them think that if you do drugs, you could get caught," he said.
North Pike, Mississippi school trustees put the wheels in motion for a district drug policy Monday night.
"We need to start a dialogue on what we need to do in the district," Superintendent Dr. Ben Cox said.
Citing a drug and drinking online survey North Pike, Mississippi high school students take annually, Cox said, "It does show that some of our kids are doing illicit drugs and drinking alcohol."
Although Cox said the percentages weren't alarming - he didn't have numbers - it was enough to get the drug-testing ball rolling for grades 9 through12. Another factor behind the proposed policy is that other schools in Mississippi are already taking the lead in testing their students.
Cox wants the school board to continue talking about the idea and begin putting together details after careful study. And until a policy is in place, the district will be doing other things to warn kids about the dangers of drinking and driving and using drugs.
"We're going to strengthen our drug awareness and abuse program," Cox said.
Mississippi law officers and others who fight the drug and drinking problem will be invited more often to speak to the student body and at club meetings and drug dogs will make more appearances at the school for searches, Cox said.
The most likely place to start drug-testing, Cox said, is with the athletic program, including cheerleaders and, possibly, band members.
"Athletes are role models, and if kids see them doing it, they might say, 'Hey, if they can do it, so can we,' " Cox said.
One component of the policy will be an advisory board, where high school principal Darryl Brock will meet regularly with a selected group of students.
Cox stressed that "it's not always the bad kids using drugs and alcohol, it cuts across everybody."
The trustees will study policies in place at other Mississippi schools, including the plans at McComb, Mississippi High School and Southwest Mississippi Community College, as guidelines for their own plan.
"We will benefit from districts going in front of us," Cox said.
One rule is already in place: the district can't test the general population - only those who take part in school-sponsored activities. The school can't test just anyone; that would be an invasion of privacy, Cox said..
As board attorney John Gordon Roach said, "extracurricular activities are a privilege; academics is a right."
Questions to be answered include the costs of testing and who will do it, the number of students tested and how often, and what the school's actions will be after a positive test, including mandatory counseling. Cox also wants the policy to include a section that allows parents of students who would not fall into the testing population to be added to the pool.
"Do we want to test all of them in extracurricular activities or do we start with athletics and expand it as we go?" Cox asked. "We need to think about it carefully. We don't need to be in a big rush to do this. We need to really tailor it for North Pike."
"I hope it helps good kids say no to drugs. It will make them think that if you do drugs, you could get caught," he said.
