INTERROGATIONS

Maud ISD

STUDENT RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES
INTERROGATIONS AND SEARCHES

DATE ISSUED: 9/13/2004

LDU-37-04

FNF(Local)-X

INTERROGATIONS

BY SCHOOL OFFICIALS

Administrators, teachers, and other professional personnel may question a student regarding the student’s own conduct or the conduct of other students. In the context of school discipline, students have no claim to the right not to incriminate themselves.

BY POLICE OR OTHER AUTHORITIES

For provisions pertaining to student questioning by law enforcement officials or other lawful authorities, see GRA(LOCAL).

LOCKERS AND VEHICLES

Students have full responsibility for the security of their lockers, and for vehicles parked on school property. It is the student’s responsibility to ensure that lockers and vehicles are locked and that the keys and combinations are not given to others. Students shall not place, keep, or maintain any article or material that is forbidden by District policy in lockers or in vehicles parked on school property. School officials may search lockers, or vehicles parked on school property, if there is reasonable cause to believe that they contain articles or materials prohibited by District policy. Students shall be responsible for any prohibited items found in their lockers or in vehicles parked on school property. If a vehicle subject to search is locked, the student shall be asked to unlock the vehicle. If the student refuses, the District shall contact the student’s parents. If the parents also refuse to permit a search of the vehicle, the District may turn the matter over to local law enforcement officials.

USE OF TRAINED DOGS

The District shall use specially trained nonaggressive dogs to sniff out and alert officials to the current presence of concealed prohibited items, illicit substances defined in FNCF(LEGAL), and alcohol. This program is implemented in response to drug and alcohol related problems in District schools, with the objective of maintaining a safe school environment conducive to education. Such visits to schools shall be unannounced. The dogs shall be used to sniff vacant classrooms, vacant common areas, the areas around student lockers, and the areas around vehicles parked on school property. The dogs shall not be used with students. If a dog alerts to a locker, a vehicle, or an item in a classroom, it may be searched by school officials. Searches of vehicles shall be conducted as described above.

NOTICE

At the beginning of the school year, the District shall inform students of the District’s policy on searches, as outlined above, and shall specifically notify students that:

1. Lockers may be sniffed by trained dogs at any time.

2. Vehicles parked on school property may be sniffed by trained dogs at any time.

3. Classrooms and other common areas may be sniffed by trained dogs at any time when students are not present.

4. If contraband of any kind is found, the possessing student shall be subject to appropriate disciplinary action in accordance with the Student Code of Conduct.

PARENT NOTIFICATION

0.The student’s parent or guardian shall be notified if any prohibited articles or materials are found in a student’s locker, in a student’s vehicle parked on school property, or on the student’s person, as a result of a search conducted in accordance with this policy.

DRUG TESTING

All students participating in athletic or cheerleading activities shall be tested for illegal drugs at the beginning of the school year. Students who enroll in the District during the school year will be tested for illegal drugs at the next random monthly testing after the student’s enrollment.

All students participating in athletic or cheerleading activities shall be subject to random testing for illegal drugs. Random testing shall be conducted monthly. Students shall be selected for testing by computer generated random selection. Selection shall be conducted by an outside third party.

Parental consent for a student to submit to biological testing shall be required as a condition of participation in any athletic or cheerleading activity. A refusal to consent shall result in the denial of participation in any athletic or cheerleading activity.

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS

Prior to producing a specimen, all students must disclose whether they are currently taking any prescription drugs and must identify those drugs. If a student tests positive for a prescription drug, the student’s parents will be promptly notified and the student will be given an opportunity to produce a valid prescription for the drug in question. If the student is unable to produce a valid prescription for the drug in question, the student will face the consequences of a positive test result as set out in this policy. A decision to withhold athletic or cheerleading privileges as a result of a positive drug test may be appealed pursuant to FNG(LOCAL).

CONSEQUENCES OF VIOLATIONS

Any student who tests positive for illegal drugs while participating in an athletic or cheerleading activity shall be ineligible for participation in all athletic or cheerleading activities for 30 calendar days. Any student who refuses to undergo biological testing shall be ineligible for participation in all athletic or cheerleading activities.

STUDENT APPEALS

A student whose biological test is reported positive may have the test results reviewed by a medical review officer, who is a licensed physician with knowledge of substance abuse disorders, at his or her own expense. This request for review must be made by the student’s parents and must be made to the District within three days of the reporting of the positive result.

An appeal shall require that the student be suspended from all athletic or cheerleading activities until the appeal process is completed. If the conclusion of the appeal is in the student’s favor, the student shall be allowed to return to normal participation in all activities.

CONFIDENTIALITY

All information relating to biological testing or the identification of persons as users of illegal drugs shall be protected by the District as confidential, unless otherwise required by law, overriding public health and safety concerns, or authorized in writing by the person in question.

Maud ISD

019903

STUDENT RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES

INTERROGATIONS AND SEARCHES

DATE ISSUED: 9/13/2004

LDU-37-04

FNF(EXHIBIT)-X

See the following pages for documents listed below:

Exhibit A: Parental Consent to Biological Testing of Student Athletes and Cheerleaders — 1 page

Exhibit B: Drug Testing for Student Athletes and Cheerleaders - Questions/Answers — 2 pages

Exhibit C: Prescription Drug Disclosure Form — 1 page

EXHIBIT A

PARENTAL CONSENT TO BIOLOGICAL TESTING OF STUDENT ATHLETES AND CHEERLEADERS

I _________________________________ as parent or guardian of ___________________ ____________________________, a minor student enrolled in Maud Independent School District and participating in athletics and cheerleading, hereby agree to the following.

I understand the District’s policy regarding substance abuse. I understand that it is the practice of Maud Independent School District to conduct drug tests for the purpose of carrying out this policy.

I understand that my child cannot be compelled to give a biological specimen. I understand that if he or she gives a biological specimen, it will be tested for drugs. I understand that the giving of a biological specimen, when requested by the District, is a condition of my child’s continued participation in athletics and cheerleading. I understand that if a test of my child’s specimen reveals an unexplained presence of a drug, the District may take disciplinary action against him or her up to and including termination of participation in athletics and cheerleading and placing him or her in an alternative education program if he or she tests positive two times within the same school year.

I authorize the officers, employees, and agents of Accuracy Testing PLUS and Maud Independent School District to communicate among themselves for official purposes, my child’s drug test results both orally and in writing, and to communicate such test results at any District administrative proceeding. I also authorize the officers, employees, and agents of Accuracy Testing PLUS and Maud Independent School District to have continued access to my child’s biological specimens for the purpose of any further analysis or study that may be necessary, and require the results be communicated to me prior to any District administrative proceedings or disciplinary actions.

Comments: _____________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

At this time I hereby agree to my child giving biological specimens.

Parent/Guardian Signature:__________________________________________________

Date: ____________________________

Printed Name: ___________________________________________________________

Witness: ________________________________________________________________

Student Signature: ________________________________________________________

Printed Name: ____________________________________________________________

Student Social Security Number: ______________________________________________

EXHIBIT B

DRUG TESTING FOR STUDENT ATHLETES AND CHEERLEADERS- Q/A

1. WHY DOES THE DISTRICT WANT TO DRUG TEST ITS ATHLETES AND CHEERLEADERS?

In today’s society more and more students and adults are using illegal drugs. The athletic society is no different than society as a whole. However, the chances of physical injury are greatly increased. When drugs are in the system, physical exercise or contact can create situations where the human body is harmed. The District does not want to take the chance of injury to any of the students under its care.

2. WHO WILL BE TESTED FOR ILLEGAL DRUG USE?

All students in grades 7-12 who will participate in athletics and cheerleading during the school year.

3. WHEN WILL THE TEST BE ADMINISTERED?

During athletic physicals or as soon after school starts as possible, all athletes and cheerleaders will be subjected to a urinalysis drug screening.

4. WHO WILL ADMINISTER THE DRUG SCREENING?

The District has contracted with Accuracy Testing PLUS of Houston, Texas, to take the urine samples and to also test the samples for drugs. At no time will school personnel handle any of the samples.

5. WILL ONLY ONE TEST BE ADMINISTERED PER YEAR?

No. After the initial screening, all athletes’ and cheerleaders’ names will be entered into a computer. Then, each month approximately ten percent of those names will be randomly chosen for testing. The independent drug-testing laboratory will maintain the database containing the names of athletes and cheerleaders and will supervise the random drawing. They will then provide to the school the names of students to be tested. Therefore, a student may only be tested once per year or a student may be tested several times per year. It all depends upon the random sampling of names.

6. WHAT IF A STUDENT TESTS POSITIVE FOR ILLEGAL DRUGS?

First of all, the school wants to be absolutely sure the test was accurate. That is why the District has contracted with Accuracy Testing PLUS. The company has an excellent reputation. If a student’s test is positive, he or she and the student’s parents will be notified. The student will be suspended from all athletics and cheerleading for 30 days. During that 30-day period the student and his or her parents will be provided with information on the dangers of drug use. They will also be provided with information on where drug counseling can be obtained. At the end of the 30 days, the student will be tested again. If that test is negative of illegal drugs, the student will be allowed to return to athletics or cheerleading. The student will also be tested each month for the remainder of the school year. If a test is again positive, the student will be removed from athletics and cheerleading for one calendar year. Following that one-year period the student may return to the athletic or cheerleading program if a drug test is successfully completed. When a student has returned to the program, a drug test will be administered six times during the following 12 months.

7. CAN A POSITIVE TEST BE APPEALED?

Yes. If a parent believes the positive test is incorrect or there is a valid reason for the positive, the parent can appeal the results. For a $30 fee paid to Accuracy Testing PLUS, a medical review officer (medical doctor) will review the test results to verify the correctness of the test. If the medical review officer finds a valid reason for the positive tests, the student will be returned to athletics.

8. FOR WHAT DRUGS WILL THE STUDENTS BE TESTED?

A student’s biological specimen will be screened for the presence of substances including but not limited to Carboxy-THC, Amphetamine/Metamphetamine, Benzoylecgonine, Opiates, Phencyclindine, Barbiturates, Benezodiazepines, Propoxyphene, Methadone, and Methaqualone. A student must disclose prior to producing a specimen whether he or she is currently taking any prescription drugs.

9. IF AN ATHLETE OR CHEERLEADER TESTS POSITIVE, WHO WILL BE NOTIFIED?

The drug testing laboratory will have one contact person at the District. That person will be either the Superintendent or the high school principal. The student and the student’s parents will then be notified along with the coach. The Bowie County Sheriff’s office will not be notified. The District wants to help students to not use drugs and to help them stop using drugs if they have started. It is not the desire of the school to get students in trouble with the law enforcement authorities. However, disciplinary action may be taken by the District.

10. WHAT IF AN ATHLETE OR CHEERLEADER DOES NOT WISH TO BE DRUG TESTED?

Athletics and cheerleading is a privilege offered to the students by the District. It is not a right. Therefore, if a student does not want to be tested, he or she does not have to participate in athletics or cheerleading.

11. WILL STUDENTS IN OTHER EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITIES, SUCH AS BAND, FFA, FHA, AND STUDENT COUNCIL ALSO BE TESTED?

No. During this year only athletes and cheerleaders will be tested. If the program is successful, other extracurricular activities may be added in future school years.

EXHIBIT C

PRESCRIPTION DRUG DISCLOSURE FORM

Printed Name: _____________________________________________________________

Date: _____________________________________

Please check one of the following:

[ ] As of the date stated above, I am not currently taking any prescription drugs.

[ ] As the date stated above, I am currently taking the following prescription drugs:

__________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________

Signature