DRUG INCIDENTS DOWN AT SENECA HIGH

SENECA - Watching lines of students walk by, Seneca High School principal
Ron Wallace can't help but be pleased.

During his first year as high school principal, the Seneca R-7 School
District not only saw a dramatic decline in student drug incidents from the
year before, but they also scored better in this category than any other
school district in the area, as based on district "report cards" released
earlier this month by Missouri's Department of Elementary and Secondary
Education (DESE).

"I'd like to take a lot of that credit but the fact is the staff have most
to do with it," Wallace said regarding DESE's report.

Out of a student population of 1,637, for the school year of 2004-05 there
were a total of only three discipline incidents involving drugs at the
Seneca High School. The year before there were 19.

This number is not only lower figure-wise but, based on student ratio, it's
also significantly lower percentage-wise than surrounding schools.

In contrast, during the same year, the Neosho R-5 district for example saw
no less than 10 separate discipline incidents involving drugs according to
DESE. With a student population at that time of 4,266 this amounts to an
incident rate per hundred students of .90. For Seneca, the rate was .70.

And the same result is basically repeated everywhere when comparing
Seneca's scores to other local districts.

Wallace greatly attributes this to the attitudes he and his teachers have
concerning student drug-use.

"We try and take a pro-active approach instead of reactive," he said. "We
also try and emphasize the consequences involved (in using drugs).
(Assistant principal) Ms. (Tasha) Fox spends a lot of time counseling the
kids and the coaches focus a lot on reminding their players. I'm sure other
school districts do the same thing but we try not to wait until we've got a
problem before we decide it's time to fix it. We're pro-active."

Adopted in the fall of 2003, Seneca's student drug testing policy may have
a lot to do with being pro-active.

Every two weeks, 10 high school students are selected randomly by a
pre-designated number for drug testing. The selection is made by
Springfield-based Employee Screening Svc Inc., and not school
administrators. According to procedure, collection of urine samples are
conducted behind closed stalls and only by an Employee Screening
technician, who stands outside of the stall.

If the results score positive, upon further follow-up testing, the student
is suspended for six weeks from any and all school activities, and won't be
allowed to return until testing negative. The second offense results in a
year suspension with a third violation earning permanent suspension. Three
strikes you're out.

While refusing to sign a drug testing consent form automatically
disqualifies students from participating in extra-curricular activities,
some students don't participate in school activities anyway and aren't
really affected.

Even so, Wallace estimates that about 98 percent of the students submit to
drug testing - even the ones who don't have to.

"A lot kids get in on it even if they aren't active in school sports or
clubs," Wallace said. "We look at it as a positive thing, not a negative
thing."

Apparently, if gauged by student reaction and perception, it's also an
effective deterrent.

"We had a group early last year who caused us some problems," Wallace
related. "But our kids realized that the other kids (the problem group)
were not going to be overlooked. They were dealt with immediately and I
think we proved to the kids that there are consequences for their actions."

Still, Wallace is adamant that the school's drug policy not be seen as
punitive. He said that even when students are disciplined for drug use,
there are still chances for redemption. For example, a student can petition
the board of education for a shortened suspension if he or she makes
efforts to prove they are "reformed" so to speak, either by undergoing
counseling or by other means.

"We want our kids to belong in activities, we want to give them a purpose
for coming to school," Wallace said. "Good grief, we all make mistakes. To
just throw the kid out without a chance to redeem himself wouldn't be right."