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| 20 September 1999 Vista Teachers Ready for Meth Identification Training Teachers will be the ones taking notes in the Vista Unified School District this week. The Vista Unified School District, working with the Vista Community Partner Project of the San Diego County Methamphetamine Strike Force is set to train all district employees to recognize the signs of methamphetamine use on district campuses. Agents from the California Department of Justice will present a one-hour professional course in drug recognition and identification to teachers, administrators, coaches, and other campus staff in special training sessions beginning WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 22ND AT 8:30 AM AT RANCHO BUENA VISTA HIGH SCHOOL. Additional sessions are scheduled all afternoon. "We saw the shocking county statistics suggesting that younger and younger kids were using methamphetamine and other drugs and we decided to be proactive," said Vicki Gorham, Director of Student Services for the district. "We're not just training staff how to spot drug problems, we're teaching them what to do when they believe a student is using drugs. We're making sure parents have access to local intervention programs and treatment options to get help for their children. Most importantly, we're ridding our campuses of drugs which threaten our unfailing commitment to academics," said Gorham. School employees will learn which drugs are the most prevalent in San Diego County, and become familiar with signs of use of narcotics, stimulants, alcohol and other drugs. Agents will make staff aware of paraphernalia frequently used to administer drugs and provide informational materials to share with parents. Campus staff will also learn to identify a person under the influence of methamphetamine and other drugs. Special Agent Dave King with the Bureau of Narcotic Enforcement, who will supervise the training, blames drug use for a myriad of social and behavioral problems which trouble many students during the vulnerable high school years. "When a student starts ditching class, when grades begin to slip, when the student seems unhappy and unmotivated, or starts to have problems with the law, national studies tell us that all too often drugs are behind that student's behavior, said King. "Thanks to this program, teachers will know the warning signs of drug use, and they'll know the items kids use when they're doing drugs. Most of all, they'll know how to get the student help so we don't have to pick him up off the street later in life," he said. King said much of the training will be devoted to methamphetamine and it's growing popularity among youth. According to the San Diego Association of Governments, methamphetamine is the second most prevalent illicit drug among teens arrested for crimes in San Diego County. Last year, of those teens arrested, more than one-third admitted to trying methamphetamine. The Methamphetamine Strike Force salutes the Vista Unified School District for taking a proactive stance on this problem. |
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