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The L-S school board, in a 6-2 vote Monday night, approved new drug policies for the district, including random drug testing for students in extracurricular activities or who drive to school.
Voting against the measure were Suzanne Keene and Phil Wimer. James Byrnes voted for the policy from Washington, D.C., via a conference call, and board member Jeffrey Mills was absent.
Other new polices include pre-employment drug screening and allowing school nurses to test any student suspected of drug use.
About a dozen parents, students and community members spoke about the random drug testing policy at the meeting.
Parent Mark Combs, who works at a residential treatment facility for at-risk boys, said similar policies tend to create an "in group" and an "out group." Combs said his 11-year-old already is talking about drug testing, while his nearly 16-year-old had no interest in participating in extracurricular activities if the policy passed.
"It is something I am really concerned about," Combs said.
Parent Pat Pontz said she felt the "guilty until proven innocent" nature of random testing hardly seemed fair to students. She also said that being made to urinate in a cup violated students' privacy.
Lisa Horn, the mother of a high school senior, felt the policy would be more fair were the entire student body subject to random testing.
Later in the meeting, a member of the district's drug task force said that state and federal laws prohibit the testing of all students, but that students participating in extracurricular activities can be made to sign papers stipulating they must submit to drug testing if picked.
West Lampeter Township police Chief Jim Walsh said he believes today's students are being encouraged to use drugs, and that he would have wanted his two daughters drug tested if they were in high school today.
"This is the right recommendation," Walsh said, "at the right time."
Parent Bill Benner was among the drug task force members who said they initially were against random drug testing. But what he learned through the task force, he said, changed his mind.
"There is a significant drug problem here at L-S," Benner said.
L-S 2008 alumna and former student board representative Alyssa Henry also supported the measure. She said the policy's success should not be measured in how many students get caught, but in how many lives are saved.
The recommendations for testing were submitted by a 22-member drug task force led by school board member Scott Riekers. The group spent more than a year researching the issue and getting feedback from district residents.
"We have got to get our arms around this problem," Riekers said.
