N.J. School District May Start Random Drug Testing For Students

ESSEX COUNTY, NJ — Random drug testing in New Jersey's public schools... a serious violation of civil liberties, or a necessary step in the fight against drug abuse? That’s the question that an Essex County school district's parents, students and community members are confronting as administrators begin a push for random drug testing.

Earlier this week, Livingston Superintendent of Schools Christina Steffner, Livingston High School Principal Mark Stern and members of the Livingston Board of Education made an appearance at the Livingston Town Council meeting to discuss the idea.

School administrators explained the goal of the program on the district website (read the full statement here):

“Livingston Public Schools is committed to keeping students safe and drug-free. As part of a strategy to prevent, deter and detect drug use, members of the Board of Education have authorized school leaders to explore random student drug testing.”

According to administrators:

“During the 2015, 2016 and the first half of 2017, there were 52 Livingston juveniles arrested for drugs and alcohol, according to township police. Livingston like all schools across the country, have students who are involved in our Student Assistance Program. Annually, we have students who are removed from school for being under the influence of drugs or alcohol and we have students who are enrolled in-patient as well as out-patient programs for substance abuse.”

• See related article: Livingston Survey Finds Teen Drug and Alcohol Use Rising

Local taxpayers may end up footing the cost of the program, which would become part of the district’s annual budget, Livingston administrators stated.

All students in the pool would be given a number; administrators would use a “number-generating program” that would be run by a member of the technology department.

However, not all students would be subject to the random testing. School officials estimated that about 75 to 80 percent of the 1,900 students at Livingston High School would be in the testing pool.

That would leave about 1,150 Livingston Public School students taking drug tests.

“If we test 20%, we would test about 230 students at an initial cost of $1,150,” administrators stated. “Since most schools that have random drug testing programs only have between a 2 to 5% positive rate - even if we calculate the need to send 10% of the screens to the lab - we would incur an additional cost of $2,300, for a total cost less than $4,000.”

The tests would screen for marijuana, opioids and ecstasy, as well as unspecified “stimulants and depressants.” School administrators did not state whether the testing would include alcohol.

Students who test positive because of legally prescribed medication will not be disciplined, administrators said.

• See related article: Medical Marijuana Oil Now Permitted for Special Ed Students at Schools Under State Law

And what would happen to students who fail the test? According to administrators:

“If a student tests positive we would notify the parent. The law does not allow suspension from school. The district would develop the consequences but in many districts it is a short-term removal from activities of one week to one month and submission of a clean urine screen. There is a possible referral for an evaluation by a licensed substance abuse counselor, education and counseling sessions with the school’s assistance counselor.”

Don’t want anything to do with the drug testing program in Livingston? Parents and guardians have a right to opt-out their children, as long as they don’t participate in sports, extra-curricular activities or park on campus.

According to Livingston school officials:

“The current case law for public schools is based on the two Supreme Court and NJ Supreme Court decisions. Those decisions are based on school districts who implemented random drug testing for athletes, students involved in extra-curricular activities, who park on campus and who volunteered for the program. Because public schools have a duty to educate all students, parents and students must have a right to opt out of a random drug testing program. Therefore, students who do not want to be a part of a random drug testing program can opt out by not being involved in one of the activities listed above.”

The district plans to gather feedback from students, parents, staff, and community members throughout the school year about the proposed program. The first parent forum will be held at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 11 in the Livingston High School auditorium.

PROS AND CONS OF SCHOOL DRUG TESTING

According to Livingston administrators, the random drug testing would have two goals: to serve as a deterrent and as an early identification of drug use and chance at intervention.

Livingston administrators cited data from groups such as the National Center for Biotechnology Information, the National Center for Education Evaluation and the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse as reasons why a drug testing policy would be beneficial to the district.

Administrators suggested this video for an overview about the positive effects a drug testing policy can have on a school district.

• See related article: 282 New Jersey School Districts With Most Drug, Alcohol Cases, New Data Shows

However, many critics of school drug testing have argued that it’s not an effective way to combat youth drug abuse and violates students’ human rights.

Serious civil rights violations occur when students are drug tested, the ACLU argues. (Read the ACLU’s advice for students who oppose drug testing here.)

According to the ACLU:

• “[School drug testing] violates students' rights to be free from unreasonable search and seizure, as outlined by the Fourth Amendment.”
• “[School drug testing] presumes students to be guilty until proven innocent (students who randomly are selected to undergo a drug test must prove their innocence by having a clean urine sample.”
• “[School drug testing] does not conform to previous case law, including Vernonia School District v. Acton, which allows student drug testing only in situations where the individual student is suspected, or where a particular group of students is demonstrated to have a level of drug use of epidemic proportions.”

Ironically, student drug testing policies can be counter-productive, according to the Drug Police Alliance.

“The efficacy of random drug testing is not supported by scientific literature and likely results in a host of unintended and harmful consequences, such as the destruction of trust and hindrance of communication between students and school administrators,” New Jersey policy coordinator Elizabeth Thompson wrote.

“Moreover, conditioning involvement in extracurricular and athletic activities on involuntary drug testing may actually deter participation in those activities, which are a proven means of helping students stay out of trouble with drugs,” Thompson added.

This viewpoint was supported by the American Academy of Pediatrics, which recently recommended against in-school drug testing.

• See related article: Police Lab Tech Allegedly Fakes Drug Tests, 2K Cases In Essex County Tainted
• See related article: US Marijuana Legalization Bill Would End 'War On Weed'

Send local news tips, photos and press releases to eric.kiefer@patch.com

Photo 1: Livingston Public Schools

Photo 2: Flickr Commons