Our tax dollars are supposed to pay for the salaries of teachers and administrators and secretaries and coaches and maintenance people in our schools. Not only that, but in recent years there has been such a large problem with illegal drugs and alcohol that many schools also require a “drug prevention and education coordinator” as well. Putnam County’s DPEC is Danielle Gillespie.
During this school year, officials have administered 497 tests for drugs or alcohol. They are not allowed to tell anyone how many of those tests came back positive. It seems that this will be vital information to be released at some point in time, though, because how else will they get a handle on whether they are providing a useful service or just another expense?
This program is controversial because it requires all students in grades six through twelve who are involved in sports or extracurricular activities or who drive to school to consent to “random saliva screenings.” Some people think that this is an invasion of privacy and some think that it is a great waste of money since it really doesn’t stop usage.
Originally the school board members had wanted the students to provide a urine sample inside of a school restroom while a drug testing agency monitor stood outside and listened for sounds of urination. However, they settled for the saliva test as a compromise.
Gillespie’s job is to go to each of the county’s eight schools once a month and test randomly selected students. The goal, of course, is to find out if students, or which students, are using alcohol or drugs during school time. If someone tests positive, then the student and a parent meet with Gillespie to determine what should be done. They try to figure out whether the positive test came because of a brief lapse in judgment on the weekend, or because there is a real problem?
The drug testing will cost the school system $40,500 this school year. That’s about the cost of one teacher’s salary in many districts. They are administered by Health Research Systems of Huntington.
