   Random drug testing in high schools
STLToday - A few parents took advantage Tuesday night of their first opportunity to ask questions of Francis Howell School District administrators about a proposed drug testing program for students. (No registration required)Quote:The proposal would require students who are involved in extracurricular activities or have a permit to park on high school campuses to submit to random urine tests throughout their high school years. High school students not involved in activities and middle school students could participate voluntarily.But Debe Hoffman, 47, of O'Fallon, the parent of two current district students and one graduate, said students who aren't in extracurricular activities might be the ones who need the testing the most.Jim Joyce, the district's director of communications, said a U.S. Supreme Court ruling doesn't allow public school districts to randomly test all students. But the court has permitted random testing of students who are in a protected class, such as those involved in extracurricular activities.Todd Berck, dean of students and head football coach at Francis Howell Central High School, said a committee that studied the testing program designed it to include students with a parking pass to make the pool of students being tested as large as possible.(My emphasis of course)This is a school fairly close to where I live and I know for a fact that the district where I go to school has considered the same thing.  I'm not 100% sure how I feel about this: on one hand, I feel like we're being targetted for testing and that the school's 'reasonable cause' is "You're teenagers, of course you're doing drugs!  That's all the proof we need."  On the other hand, I know plenty of kids ARE doing that stuff and the administrators want to stop it.  But this does not, in my mind, outweigh the previous point.The article mentions that the Supreme Court has ruled against school-wide testing and that particular groups must be used to decide who is tested and who is not, but I think setting aside those who drive to school for drug testing is a pretty low blow because so many students do so, and it doesn't make you any more likely to be a drug user - it's just a way to cast the net as wide as possible.Thoughts on constitutionality?  Is this fair?   
  I have this policy coming into effect in my school next year.  In fact, it shouldnt be random for people in sports and what not.  Why?  Because if they are in sports in the first place, they aren't on them.  Especially how at least in my area, how strict coaches are, they detect anything.  In fact, 99% of the students who do drugs, dont go to sports.  It should just be random for everyone, not just students with extraciricular activites.  In this side, no its not fair.  Its a form of segregation against people who play sports and what not.  People who dont are free to smoke as much and snort as much as they want because they wont get drug tested.Does it say WHY school-wide testing was refused?  Personally, I think the other way around is the part thats unconstitutional.  The Supreme Court makes stupid descisions sometimes.   ;  They aren't restricting it to athletes because they think athletes are always getting toasted. They're restricting it to people doing "extracurricular activities" because they can pretend they're giving students a choice in the matter. Don't want to be drug tested? Oh, fine! Free country! Fourth amendment and all that! Of course, don't expect to go to any of the pep rallies, or any of the dances, or any of the football games, or be able to drive to school, or belong to any campus groups, or vote in class elections. It's a fake choice designed only to add another bullet point to their case for legitimacy.   ;Quote:Original post by Sneftel...Yeah.  Good job barring people with drug problems from any social activity that might actually help alleviate/cure the problem.   ;  They have to create the next generation of prisoners somehow... got to keep those prison guards employed now that we've shipped all our manufacturing capability to China... "Don't be told what you want and don't be told what you need There's no future, no future, no future for you";  I think it should be ok for everyone to do drugs legally as long as they do not endanger others, like with vehicals.  I guess that would sum up my stance on just about every drug thread.   ;Quote:Original post by LessBreadThey have to create the next generation of prisoners somehow... got to keep those prison guards employed now that we've shipped all our manufacturing capability to China... "Don't be told what you want and don't be told what you need There's no future, no future, no future for you"I have an idea as to what you're trying to say - but are you railing against "The War on Drugs" in general, or Sneftel and Clavette's comments about making extracurricular stuff unavailable to those who arguably need it most?   ;Quote:Original post by FrequencyThoughts on constitutionality?Unfortunately, I can't think of any way in which this violates the constitution.Quote:Is this fair?No, this is just one more step toward institutionalizing our children. Their time, their minds, and now their bodies belong to the state.The signs of drug use are usually easy enough to spot. Forcing kids to pee in a cup upon command is a red herring. There are those in authority that do not want to see narcotics go away and until we are willing to face our own corruption, they will continue to be a problem.   ;Quote:Original post by WitchcravenI think it should be ok for everyone to do drugs legally as long as they do not endanger others, like with vehicals.  I guess that would sum up my stance on just about every drug thread.What do you mean, like with vehicles? Just curious.There's an argument to be made that drugs/alcohol/prostitution (things that don't 'hurt' others) lead to really awful societies.Part of the problem with drugs is that you can no longer control whether or not you do something that hurts others. That's why hallucinogens, for example, are a generally poor idea.   ;  The incidence of false positive is pretty high too, like the article said. And if you expand the sample size to essentially the whole school - at least 1 or 2 kids are going to get false positive.I'd worry about what they do with the results. Bar kids from extracurriculars or parking? Put it on their permanent record? Suspend/expel them? Throw them in prison? If they only shared the information with the parents and school drug counselors then, maybe, I don't know...I'm glad I'm out of high school.   