In today's society, educational staff have a duty to be aware of any illegal activity occurring with their students.
We often hear in the news about drugs running rampant in school hallways and it's time these faculties do something about it.
However, the way one school board went about testing its pupils for narcotics has left the children's parents fuming.
"She said mom you're going to be mad."
Parents with students attending USD 325 in Phillipsburg, Kansas were left furious after their children returned home with a chunk of their hair shaved off, which was the size of a quarter.
Parents Janette and Brian Anderson were stunned when their daughter returned from school one day, and told them a random drug test left her with a bald spot on her head.
"She came home and was upset because she had shaven a big spot off of her head, which wound up being the size of the quarter on the back of her head," Brian told KSN.
"She said mom you're going to be mad," Jeanette added. "And she instantly showed me and the tears were there."
Although USD 325 informed parents it would be conducting random drug tests for middle and high school students involved in after-school activities, they were left unaware what method the board would be using.
"We should have done a better job of informing the public."
Even though parents had signed consent forms to have their children tested for narcotics, they took their complaints to the school board's superintendent.
"They went with a hair follicle test because it goes back 90 days," Superintendent Mike Gower said. "There's been a lot of concerns of why don't you use swabs? Why don't you use urine? Those test will not go as far back."
Every month, USD 325 tests two middle school students and six high school students for narcotics, and while Gower explained that while the hair is typically taken from three different spots around the head, this time they only took it from one.
Gower admitted the school board should have "done a better job of informing the public" about their drug testing method and how they "wanted it done in three spots."
"That's what got people upset," he told The Wichita Eagle. "But it's on me, and what happens in this district is on me, and I take full responsibility."
According to Gower, they are now looking into a new company to conduct the drug testing hopefully in time for USD 325's next board meeting.
"We'll make sure someone is in there, not only the parent, but an employee," he said. "We don't just want the testing person from the company."
[H/T: KSN, The Wichita Eagle]
