Sorry, this is tough to read, but a reader alerted me to the fact that the MS was searched for drugs on Thursday. This message was posted on the web page "Today the Canine Unit conducted a routine narcotic sweep of our school. An informational letter regarding this matter will be sent home today."I didn't get the letter or see it, but what bothered the reader was the use of "routine".
Thursday was a make-up day, so it wasn't routine in the sense that it was scheduled in the way a fire drill is scheduled.
They may have followed standard operating procedure in conducting it, but we'd expect that.
The other piece of information that was provided to me, and this is hearsay, is that the search was based on a tip and several students did have drugs. I can't confirm that, I am only relaying what was forwarded to me.
Regardless of if any drugs were found or not, I agree with the point that 'routine' doesn't really fit.
6 comments:
Rosss,
I am not sure I understand your comment about the use of the word routine. What's wrong with the word routine in this case?
I think what Ross is getting at is that the district is trying to make this sound like it is nothing out of the ordinary, just another planned search for drugs. Not that they potentially got a tip that there were drugs and the search was done in response to that tip.
Saying it was done on a tip an that drugs were found would force the district to admit that there might be a problem with drugs in our schools. Something that might put a blemish on our district and this administration.
But, once again we get the NASD code of silence, and based on the lack of responses to this post, many parents are complicit in this as well.
If drugs are found in the school (and let's be honest, we all know they are there), we the parents of students should be informed as we are just as much a part of fighting this as the district is. To give the impression that there aren't drugs in our schools give us a false sense of security that our kids aren't being exposed to it.
Routine to me is something that happens regularly and is not 'prompted'.
The drug search at the MS does not appear to be routine. It occurred after school would have been over had we not had snow days and on the day students were cleaning out lockers.
The rumor is that there was a tip that prompted the search prior to cleaning out the lockers and that the canine stopped at several lockers that had to be opened and further searched. Whether or not drugs were found, I have not heard.
As anonymous points out nicely, you can't really confront a problem if no one wants to acknowledge it exists.
The use of the word routine made it seem like, we don't have a problem, but we have to do these checks, so we did one, nothing to see, move along.
ANON 9:37
I agree with your statement that NASD does have a code of silence regarding drug use within the students in this district.
Just look at the kids that are leaving the high school and watch them sell/buy drugs out of their cars, on the corners and at the park. This school district is plagued with a drug problem, but the administration ignores it.
Think I am out of line; just ask the kids at the high school, you will be surprised by what you are told.
Every middle and high school in the country has kids who use and/or sell drugs. Nazareth is probably no worse or better than many - probably average in terms of drugs.
My daughter attends the middle school and brought home a paper the day of the search explaining what happened. The word routine in describing a drug search would, in my opinion, be to explain that it was a typical drug search - conducted in a routine matter. Not that it was a routine or commonplace occurance.
It's better for the school to conduct searches based on tips and also random searches. My daughter heard that a lighter was found but not sure about drugs. I don't think we should pick apart the wording the school district uses to inform parents that this happened. The search is beneficial no matter the wording or the reason. We should be glad they are choosing to be proactive regarding drugs.
Thanks for explaining, Ross. On first read I just wasn't sure what you meant. I actually like the idea of doing it on a day like last Thursday. In my experience (I sometimes perform audits at work) the best time to perform audits is on an "unusual" day (Dec 24th, etc.). No one is expecting it and you get the most honest answers.
In this case I don't have an issue with calling it routine. I just get the feeling that everyone is reading into it a little too much. If there was a tip-off, I do not know anything about that as it has not been reported. might be a rumor.
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