School Drug Policies

Young people, in particular those under the age of 25, can suffer far-reaching mental, physical, social, and legal consequences for substance use. The responsibility for assisting them to make healthy choices is best approached with multifaceted strategies that include the family, school, and community. A school's alcohol and other drug policy represents the framework for efforts in the school to address student alcohol and other drug use; serves to guide prevention efforts; establishes boundaries of application, expectations, and normative values for student behavior; details the school's procedures in handling incidents with consequences; and empowers adults responsible for students in the district. It is essential that the school send the message to young people and adults alike that the use, possession, and intent to supply illegal and unauthorized drugs within the realm of the school will not be tolerated.

There is great differentiation in the content, application, and enforcement of school alcohol and other drug policies. Neither federal government nor individual states mandate a single course of action for all school districts to follow in creating and enforcing drug policies. For this reason, policies and procedures vary between districts. Schools within a district do well to maintain a single policy with procedures that apply to all students within the district. The creation of policies and procedures must balance what is best for the individual and what is most desirable for the total school population, necessitating the inclusion of prevention, intervention, and support as well as consequences for violations. Policies of record encompass the district's policies and procedures of which school drug policies are part. These include procedures implemented by staff for prevention efforts and incident management as well as violations and consequences published in student handbooks and posted on Web sites.