By Shari Kaplan
Despite the concerns of some board members, the Los Gatos Union School District Board of Trustees voted unanimously March 13 to begin the DARE program in fifth-grade classrooms.
The board discussed implementing DARE (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) earlier this month but held off making its decision because of issues raised by board member Steve Glickman.
At last week's meeting, Glickman reiterated his concerns that DARE is an ineffectual program. He also asked the crowd that packed the Daves Avenue School library to consider whether a law-enforcement approach or an educational and family-oriented approach was the best way to help children steer clear of substance abuse.
"I don't want to see our kids involved with drugs; nobody does," Glickman said. "[But] if we as a community want to take the law-enforcement approach to dealing with substance abuse, we must at least understand the implications of what we're choosing."
Interim Superintendent Steve Peck said he realized that research into DARE's effectiveness has produced mixed results, but he strongly supported the program nevertheless.
Los Gatos Police Chief Larry Todd told the board he was concerned that the police were being made out as the "bad guys" in their quest to curb substance abuse.
"The vast majority of our time is spent in a preventative mode of operation, not enforcement," Todd said, explaining that 90 percent of the juveniles the police department deals with go through diversion programs, where no criminal record is established.
Todd said he has found no substance-abuse prevention program that is a panacea for all problems, but DARE outranks many other similar programs. Two of DARE's strong points, he added, are the presence of a uniformed officer in the classroom to serve as a positive role model and the highly effective synergism DARE creates when used in conjunction with other district programs such as Here's Looking at You 2000, Skills for Adolescence and Triad-On-Campus counseling services.
Board member Bruce Berwald voiced concern that a DARE officer would be under legal obligation to report information shared by a child. But Ofc. John Campos, a LGPD school resource officer and DARE instructor, said that one of the program's rules is that students say "someone I know" rather than disclose names of individuals who may be in trouble.
If students come to him after class and confide something, he is under the same obligation as all teachers are to report suspected child abuse, neglect or illegal activities, Campos said.
Several educators and parents addressed the board in support of DARE, including Community Against Substance Abuse chairwoman Vicki Thorburn and Fisher Middle School teacher Christine Jenkins. Valerie Harrison, a former member of the Santa Clara County Board of Education, said she was worried that a police presence in schools may mislead parents into a false sense of security, causing them to spend less time talking with their children about substance abuse, peer pressure and related issues.
Before the board took its vote, Berwald and Glickman said they'd put aside their concerns about DARE provided the district monitored the program.
"I'm willing to take a chance that this will be effective," Berwald added.
The DARE curriculum will begin next fall in fifth-grade classes at Blossom Hill, Daves Avenue and Van Meter elementary schools; Lexington is under the jurisdiction of the Santa Clara County Sheriff. Campos will provide one hour of instruction per week for 17 weeks at no cost to the district.
This article appeared in the Los Gatos Weekly-Times, March 20, 1996.
©1996 Metro Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved