TRAINING TO BEGIN HELPING SCHOOLS DETECT DRUG USE

It may soon become a lot harder for students who use drugs or alcohol to
get away with it in school.

That's because the Middlesex County Prosecutor's Office and local police
officers certified as Drug Recognition Experts plan to start training
school nurses and district administrators how to recognize specific signs
and symptoms of substance abuse among students --- and even to identify the
type of drug being used.

School administrators and district student assistance counselors will
receive eight hours of training in general symptoms, such as restlessness,
anxiety and eyelid tremors in those using stimulants, and slurred speech,
droopy eyes and disorientation in those using depressants.

School nurses would receive that plus an additional eight hours of
in-depth, hands-on training that involves using information about the
student's pulse, blood pressure and pupil dilation to identify drug use and
whether that drug is most likely alcohol, marijuana, heroin, cocaine or a
host of other drugs, East Brunswick Patrolman Joe Marcantonio said.

The first training for school counselors in Middlesex County is scheduled
for June, and training will be available free to any school district upon
request, he said.

Marcantonio, a former registered nurse, is the Central Jersey regional
coordinator and instructor for the Drug Recognition Experts program, which
trains police officers to recognize and examine suspects who may have been
driving under the influence of a controlled substance other than alcohol.

These officers, about 150 in the state trained since 2000, examine the
suspect's pupils, blood pressure and other indications to determine whether
he or she can be charged with an offense on the spot that will hold up in
court. This saves law enforcement from having to wait for up to six weeks
for the results of blood or urine samples, he said.

The East Brunswick Police Department's six officers in the program have
correctly identified which drug suspects were using in 96 percent of cases,
he said.

The goal of the new Drug Impairment Training for Education Professionals,
or DITEP, program is to pass along at least a fraction of that drug
recognition ability to school officials -- not so students can be arrested,
but so their parents can be notified and they can be referred for
treatment, Marcantonio said.

The Drug Recognition Experts program is supported by a grant from the state
Division of Highway Traffic Safety.

The DITEP program was announced last week by Assistant Prosecutor Nick
Sewitch as the newest of several programs that target underage drinkers and
high-school drug users, particularly during the current prom and upcoming
graduation celebration seasons.

For the 17th year, the prosecutor's office and local police departments are
manning DWI checkpoints throughout the county through the end of June in an
effort to deter drunken drivers from getting behind the wheel, Sewitch said.

In the past 16 years the checkpoints have been in place, not one prom-goer
or graduate has been killed or seriously injured in a motor vehicle
accident, he said.

Many school districts now take a proactive role in preventing drunk
driving, by sponsoring alcohol-free prom and graduation parties, said
Noreen Noel, education coordinator for the Middlesex chapter of the
National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence, a nonprofit group.

Still, Noel works with school counselors to educate them and provide
literature about substance abuse.

Everyone convicted of DWI and/or underage drinking in the county must
attend a two-day session at the Middlesex County Intoxicated Driver
Resource Center, director Donna Frandsen said.

"I see about 1,000 drunk drivers a year, and about one-third of them are
underage drinkers," Frandsen said.

Another resource for schools is the Emergency Nurses Cancel Alcohol-Related
Emergencies, a program sponsored by Robert Wood Johnson University
Hospital. Twenty registered nurses volunteer with the program and visit
elementary schools, high schools and senior centers to warn about the
medical effects of alcohol and drug use, nurse Kathleen Zavotsky said.