In a move destined to cause more than a small ripple in the pond, administrators in Spartanburg County, SC announced plans to propose a policy of random drug and alcohol testing for students participating in athletic activities not required for graduation (i.e other than gym class).

A random drug and alcohol testing policy for student athletes proposed to the Spartanburg District 5 school board Monday night would be a first for Spartanburg County and one of only a few of its kind in the state.

Superintendent Scott Turner said the proposal, presented to the board by Bobby Bentley, district spokesman and athletics director, has been under development for about five months. Turner said the policy was initiated by coaches and is supported by district administration.

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The policy would apply to all District 5 students participating in high school athletic programs not required for graduation. Bentley said about 500 students would currently qualify.

If approved, all students must submit a consent form, signed by both the student and his or her legal guardian, to allow for random drug and alcohol testing in order to participate in any high school sport. Testing would be completely random, based on a roster of identification numbers correlating to students eligible for testing.

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The presented policy calls for the district to test substances including, but not limited to, alcohol, marijuana, opiates, cocaine, methamphetamines, phencyclidine (PCP) and MDMA (Ecstasy). Prescription drugs (taken without a proper prescription and verified by a doctor) would fall under the umbrella of the substance list, but the policy does not include testing for steroids.

Bentley said steroid testing could easily be tacked onto the policy, should officials deem it necessary in the future.

Bentley said test results will not impact students’ academic records, nor will they be turned over to law enforcement, unless the district was legally compelled to do so. Consequences for a positive drug or alcohol test range from 12-week substance abuse services with a certified clinical counselor to a 1-year suspension from the athletics, pending the successful completion of counseling, which includes further drug testing.

An appeals process is also part of the policy.

Bentley said all costs — $25 per test — would be paid by the athletic department with athletic gate receipts. He said district administrators will not publicly disclose how many tests they expect to administer in order to keep the process completely random.

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Bentley said the policy puts District 5 in relatively uncharted waters, as few other school districts have adopted such policies or even considered them. Smith said through his research, only Lexington districts 2 and 3 and Marion District 1 have similar policies in place. ( source )

While we do not know if the proposed policy will ever make it onto the books in Spartanburg County, we do applaud District 5 and all other school districts that have at least TRIED to do something about underage drinking and adolescent use/abuse of illicit and/or illegally obtained substances.

Testing for alcohol & drug use at home

School districts and their administrators can only do so much to curb the use of drugs and alcohol by minors. If the parents at home do not work hand in hand with the administrators by enforcing a Zero Tolerance policy for their kids at home, then what possible power will a Zero Tolerance policy at school have?

The links below lead to informational pages about various drug testing methods that parents can make use of at home:

Drug Testing Urine

Drug Testing Saliva

Drug Testing Hair Follicle

Drug Testing Drug Confirmation Kits

Drug Testing Nail Drug Test

Drug Testing Sweat Testing

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