cannabisnews.com: SV Drug Testing Plan Draws Concern 





SV Drug Testing Plan Draws Concern 
Posted by FoM on February 11, 2000 at 15:15:40 PT
By Donna Thomas, Staff Writer
Source: BirminghamtonPress
 Students ask questions at board's forum.Issues of privacy and equal treatment were voiced Thursday in the auditorium of the Susquehanna Valley High School Thursday, where officials held a forum on mandatory drug testing for student athletes. 
"They don't even know if there is any reason to test," said sophomore Lucas Coene. "I don't understand why they don't test the whole team - with no names - and see if anyone is actually using drugs."About 50 students showed up for the forum, sometimes shooting questions at Timothy O'Hearn, the district's health and wellness director, in angry and frustrated voices. The group as a whole was inquisitive and mature about the policy that the district hasn't yet voted on. They just wanted answers on how the policy would be put in place - fairly.The cost of randomly testing athletes every two weeks will run from $8,000 to $10,000 and will be paid for through grant money the first year.Brian Murray, a sophomore who agreed with Coene, said "$10,000 is a waste of taxpayer money."The Susquehanna Valley Central School District would be the first in the area to test athletes if the board of education approves a testing policy. The board will hold another public forum at 7 p.m. Feb. 15 in the high school auditorium, when it will announce the proposed policy. The board expects to vote in March.High school athletes are the only students the district can legally test, because they are required to sign contracts at the beginning of the school year to stay drug-free throughout the year. But what if a student tests for chemicals in his body following time spent out of school, like a weekend or summer vacation? The student is off the team, answered O' Hearn. But, he added, the door is always open. A positive test means the student must go for counseling and could resume playing with the approval of the counselor. Kelley Gunther, a senior, said she liked the idea of testing athletes. "It (the test) shouldn't be a problem if you're not doing drugs," Gunther said. And as far as the weekend excuse goes, Gunther said drugs are illegal anytime you take them.Published: February 11, 2000All content ©2000 The Binghamton Press Co.CannabisNews Search & Archives of Drug Testing Articles: http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/list/drug_testing.shtmlhttp://www.alltheweb.com/cgi-bin/asearch?type=all&query=cannabisnews+drug+testing
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Comment #3 posted by Puritan on February 12, 2000 at 05:08:27 PT
testing
Not enough money for education (college expenses, teacher's salaries, updated equipment,etc...) but always more than enough for drug testing and prisons. What is wrong with this picture???
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Comment #2 posted by FoM on February 11, 2000 at 15:51:58 PT
Really a wrong way 
What I thought when he said drugs are illegal all the time is the kids will just go out and get messed up on alcohol a very deadly legal drug.Doesn't anyone know the mind of a young person? It seems the people that work with young people live in a world all their own.
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Comment #1 posted by kaptinemo on February 11, 2000 at 15:28:11 PT
Only zee gulity need vorry!
"It (the test) shouldn't be a problem if you're not doing drugs," Gunther said. And as far as the weekend excuse goes, Gunther said drugs are illegal anytime you take them.God, these people! They never learn! What that simple minded, clot-brained dunderhead said is almost word for word the standard Nazi interrogation doctrine in a nutshell. Guilty before proven innocent. What are they teaching in modern day civics classes these days, how to be a 'good German'?
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