That’s why Drug Abuse Resistance Education is important for the elementary school students, said Jason Hussel, principal of South Elementary in Fairfield. He said Fairfield Police DARE Officer Greg Lamb tailors his classes to each grade level.
DARE is no longer telling kids to “Just Say No,” the drug prevention message kids heard in the 1980s and early 1990s. Hussel said the program is “trying to keep up with the societal issues and to teach that to the kids.”
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“One of the things DARE talks about is they want to help protect kids. They want to protect them against well-known dangers and contemporary dangers,” he said. “They’re trying to stay relevant on what to teach these kids.”
There have been reports over the years that say DARE is ineffective, but Lamb, who teaches at the elementary schools within the city of Fairfield limits, said his approach is direct.
“We talk to their kids,” he said. “A lot of people don’t want to talk about drugs to their kids. They don’t want to talk about the harmful effects of tobacco, especially if they’re smokers. They don’t want to talk about beer or alcohol and what it can do to you if you drink too much.”
Drug prevention in Fairfield Schools includes a multi-pronged approach, where elementary students are taught the DARE curriculum, and students from middle school to high school are taught formally in health class and informally during club and homeroom. The Fairfield Prevention Coalition works with students from middle school up, and data from a survey two years ago showed alcohol, tobacco, marijuana and prescription drug use are all down.
Crossroads Middle School Principal David Maine said the DARE program “feels like it’s working” when students in the 10,000-student district reach middle school.
“Because of the DARE program, not that kids aren’t doing stuff, I don’t deal with it as I did 10 years ago, or 15 years ago,” said Maine, who’s been a middle school administrator for 24 years, the last 18 in Ohio.
Lamb said DARE is all about prevention, which includes drugs, alcohol and other societal issues, like talking with strangers, peer pressure and bullying.
But the drug prevention part of DARE can be difficult with changing laws, such as many states legalizing marijuana in some form.
“You get a lot of questions,” Lamb said. “I’ve had push back about marijuana, especially when parents call up to say, ‘I don’t want my kid doing DARE because I believe in marijuana.’”
When he gets questions from students about the conflicting message, he tries to explain to them “that sometimes things change.”
Hussel said he appreciates how DARE has in recent years changed its message to be proactive with the students, including topics like mental health and bullying.
“It’s great to hear that DARE is starting to touch that as well,” he said. “It’s something that’s sort of been hidden in the past but I’m glad DARE is starting to discuss that.”
Every year officials hold an assembly where students present essays about the lessons they’ve learned in their DARE class. It’s a big formal assembly.
“We make it a big deal out of it to stress the importance of the lessons they learn,” he said.
Hussel said the message is being heard by the students, as most write about something that’s personal to them.
“That’s what it’s all about is when kids can make personal connections,” he said.
COMING MONDAY
Officials battling student drug use have a different message for those in middle school and up. The Journal-News talked to local officials for a report that will be in Monday’s newspaper to follow today’s report on the prevention methods still prevalent from those in grades 5 and lower with the long-standing DARE program.
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