The National Methamphetamine
Drug Conference
Workgroup 2
Education: School And Community Partnerships
PRESENTATION SUMMARIES:
"Community-based Coalitions,"
David Walker, Executive Director, North Carolina Partnership for Children, Raleigh, North Carolina
We need to increase community-based collaboration. Partnerships linking schools, businesses, and other groups promote important interactions where all partners are equal and complement each organization's needs. For successful collaboration, we must identify potential and appropriate partners, create new interventions, and develop responsive and appropriate public policies.
Eighteen percent of children entering school are unprepared and therefore at increased risk for dropout and other problems. According to a recent study (Smart School, 1993, by Governor Hunt), the main area of focus must be entry to school. For success, a child must be healthy and ready to learn. Early intervention programs serving ages 0-5 years are important to later success.
Partnerships begin with a diverse board of directors. Many funders mandate the following as a prerequisite: Law enforcement, schools, community colleges, universities, extension services, programs such as Head Start, and the faith community. Outcomes expected by these same funders include:
- Increased quality and cost-effectiveness due to pooling of resources.
- Increased level of immunizations and health screenings.
- Increase in effectiveness of parent/support groups.
- Increased attention to funding for child-care subsidies.
- Improved parental involvement.
"DARE Responds,"
William Alden, Deputy Director, DARE America, Alexandria, Virginia
The Drug Abuse and Resistance Education (DARE) program is a prevention program that is also growing internationally. In the United States, 70 percent of school districts in the country have D.A.R.E. Local police deliver a K-12 curriculum in the community. D.A.R.E. boasts an enrollment of more than 5 million fifth and sixth graders who have 17 one-hour lessons.The program shows positive short-term effects, but no program can inoculate youth for life. We should offer it consistently over the entire school experience to improve long-range performance. The D.A.R.E. program is replicable and transformable from school to school; it is a public/private partnership. Current activities include a newly completed revision of the middle and high-school curricula. Funding for research and development is needed from the private sector. More officers are needed in the middle schools.
"Drugs are a Dead End Campaign,"
Dick Palmquist and Karen Walklin, Nebraska Broadcasters Association, Lincoln, Nebraska
A brief historical review of Nebraska's anti-drug campaign was given as an example of a media, government and corporate partnership. Campaign activities started in 1989, combining the forces of state prevention and treatment agencies, the Nebraska State Patrol, the Governor's office, Mutual of Omaha as corporate sponsor, and the Nebraska Broadcasters Association. Broadcasters focus radio and TV announcements on three major areas: (1) prevention, (2) intervention and treatment, and (3) law enforcement. In the fall of 1996, spots centered on educating parents and users about methamphetamine -- its characteristics, the dangers of use, and the increased chance of arrest. A toll-free hotline is promoted in the spots, and calls to the hotline have measured the program as successful.
"Lure of Meth for Adolescents,"
Cathy Siders, Ph.D., Psychologist, Omaha, Nebraska
There is an increase in usage and an increase in adolescents with first-time experimentation. Factors which make adolescents particularly vulnerable include common experiences, body changes and fluctuation of hormones, and peer influence. Fluctuating moods are normal for adolescents, and a quick fix with methamphetamine is often tried. Between 1990 and 1994, there was a documented increase in high-school seniors who tried methamphetamine at least once. Besides the overall rise in usage, 10th-grade students perceive methamphetamine is easy to buy.
School-based programs must teach adolescents to be more assertive and direct with their peers by use of refusal skills, not alienation actions. Learning strategies are complex; preaching or teaching is insufficient and must have active participation between teacher and pupil to be effective. Personal relationships are key. Adults can still influence adolescents' thinking and must structure learning so youth are involved with their adult mentors.
Discussion—Questions and Comments
- Is there a need for school-based initiatives? Why or why not?
- How can we mobilize the community effort?
- What are the incentives for this approach?
- Focus groups from high schools ask us to visually show the damage to the brain.
- Students need a knowledge base to have a reason to refuse; this includes the science of what drugs do to their brains and how drugs affect their lives, families, and communities.
- Coordination with health care centers at schools is important.
- Quality of life comes from the neighborhood and family; it spills over into the schools.
- Is the only avenue to youth through the schools?
- This is an opportunity to help parents with parenting and give them methods to talk to their children. It is supplemental education to what parents provide at home.
- School should not be the sole source; we are emphasizing schools too much. We must use external resources to help schools.
- Curricula must be uniform from ages 12-18. We must improve peer learning through better use of the religious community and individual programs.
- An adolescent used to have 12 influential adults in his or her life. Today that number is only 2 or 3. We must look for more adult mentors.
- Colleges need to accept more responsibility. How can we make this happen?
- Almost no evidence is available regarding efficacy. We need positive outcome studies.
- The bulk of the students' time is spent at school. Time at home is often unsupervised. Schools have the structure to teach the message, and students are a captive audience.
- Students are the community of the future, and our work at school is an investment in that community.
- Families are often unable and untrained to deal with these issues. Skills such as problem solving, interpersonal relationship building, and socialization cannot be completely accomplished at home.
- We must have rigorous evaluation and have outcome-based programs using both quantitative and qualitative standards.
- No other alternative exists for high-risk families; the community and school must help.
