June 1995, the Supreme Court of the United States passed a law to randomly drug test students involved in extracurricular activities or sports. A voting decision of 6 to 3 set the law into place. In today’s society, teenagers and young adults become victims of drug abuse and addiction. Young student athletes find themselves faced with low self-esteem, peer pressure, and anxiety. Student athletes fill the void in their lives with the illegal use of drugs (including steroids) and alcohol. Should school officials have the authority to randomly administer drug testing on student athletes? 94 School policies enforce drug-free schools. Student athletes randomly get screened for drugs in their systems. Consequently, when random drug testing first occurred in schools, drug testing caused a ruckus. Some parents and students contested the law, but they had no luck. The law enforces ethical standards that live and stand behind the law. O'Connor argues that “testing randomly chosen student athletes for drugs without a suspicion of wrongdoing violates their right to privacy” (O'Connor, Stevens and Souter 1). Ultimately in society, some people agree to new laws and some don’t. Statistically, drug test results improved amongst student athletes. The Student Drug Testing Institute say, “Hunterdon Central Regional High School in New Jersey saw significant reductions in 20 of 28 drug use categories after 2 years of a drug-testing program (e.g., cocaine use by seniors dropped from 13 percent to 4 percent)” (Student Drug-Testing Institute). 144 A good percentage of student athletes lack knowledge of drugs side effects. The Student Drug Testing Institute say, “Even a single use of an intoxicating drug can affect a person's judgment and decision-maki... ... middle of paper ... ...l. Teachers, students, and school administrators noticed the weird way Lil Bobby acts during practice and in class. Lil Bobby’s teacher decides to visit his parents. The teacher realizes that Lil Bobby’s parents seemed high on drugs. The teacher told Lil Bobby’s parents about his demeanor in school, and Lil Bobby’s parents looked at the teacher and shrugged their shoulders. The teacher noticed that Lil Bobby displayed some of the same characteristics that his parents displayed. The next day the teacher took it upon herself to seek help for Lil Bobby. Before Lil Bobby could get some help, he overdosed on some pills he found in his parents room. Lil Bobby almost died, thanks to his teacher who took the initiative to seek help when she noticed a change in one of her student’s behavior. Law makers and school officials ultimate goals reflect positive outcomes.
Taylor, Hopkins. Substance abuse issues to Offending Athletes. Miami: Beachwood Press, pages 35-37. 2009. Print.
Between 1985 and 1989 the Vernonia School District began to see a marked increase in disciplinary problems, drug use by students, athletic injuries, use of drugs by athletes and a student body preoccupation with the drug culture. The school district adopted a policy requiring students who participated in interscholastic athletics to sign a consent of both routine and random drug testing.
In Vernonia v. Acton, the issue in question is the school’s ability to drug test student-athletes. In the mid 80’s, the Vernonia School District noticed an uptick in drug use, and more so from athletes. Furthermore, the football and wrestling coach cited several situations that he felt drug-use was causing the athletes to be unsafe. Thus, the school instituted a mandatory drug test for all student athletes prior to the season, and then weekly random drug testing. If a student-athlete failed a test, they would have the choice of joining a rehab program, or serving a suspension. Suspension from school was never an option, nor were the results reported to authorities. Results were reported to the superintendent, athletic director, and other personnel on a need to know basis only (Vernonia v. Acton, 1995).
“Search and Seizure. Suspicionless Drug Testing. Seventh Circuit Upholds Drug Testing of Student Athletes in Public Schools. Schaill v. Tippecanoe County School Corp., 864 F.2d 1309 (7th Cir. 1988).” Harvard Law Review. 103 (Dec. 1989): 591-597.
Studies as recent as 2001 have shown that 50% of 12th graders have been associated with drug use (“Frequently”). Schools have identified this to be a crucial issue, especially if it is a student who participates in extracurricular activities. Frequent drug use has caused schools to enforce drug test policies. The problem is, not everyone is on board with this new policy. To comprehend the Board of Education v. Earls case of 2002, one must interpret the history prior to the case, contemplate the arguments throughout the case, and recognize the significance of the case. This issue has caused enough controversy to make it all the way to the Supreme Court.
In all areas of sports, professional, college, and even high school, there is widespread illegal use of performance-enhancing drugs. Although there are many reasons for athletes to choose to use these drugs, the cost of such use, both to the athlete and to society can be extraordinarily high. It is important to understand why performance-enhancing drugs are used and what are the consequences of their use to the athlete and society.
In 1985 a case the Supreme Court heard a case involving searches and seizure of student’s lockers and effects but the school need to show that “reasonable ground existed to believe that the search will uncover evidence of a violation of criminal law or regulation,” rather than the probable cause standard that applies in criminal proceedings. (Shmoop Editorial Team, 2008) Drug testing of students has since been upheld since the Supreme Court heard New Jersey v. T.L.O.
In many high schools around the country, student athletes are using drugs. “The percent of students that have drunk alcohol is 72.5% while the number of students who have used marijuana is 36.8%” (Report: Nearly Half of High School Students Using Drugs, Alcohol). The students believe that since they are athletes that they do not need to abide by the rules because they feel more superior and that the narcotic will not hurt or affect them. Implementing random drug tests for athletes will create a positive image and not hurt others or themselves. Schools need to have drug tests for student athletes because drugs effect relationships, using drugs have consequences, and lastly they have a major effect on the body.
Some may say that drug testing students is unconstitutional because it is an “invasion of privacy”. This, however, is not true. . . “In 1995, the United States Supreme Court ruled that drug testing for high school athletes was constitutional, and some districts expanded their policies to include middle schools.” I believe allowing schools to drug test athletes was a very positive thing. For many reason, but mainly because athletes who are on drugs have a higher risk of being injured. For example a kid who is on drugs and plays a sporting event has a greater risk of their heart stopping on the field or court. “Drug tests analyze bodily samples such as urine, blood, or hair to detect the presence of legal and illegal drugs.” The most common one is urine testing. I believe urine testing is the best way for high school students, because it does not take as long as some other tests and it is not as costly as other tests. This is especially important because obviously a school does not want to spend money on anything they do not have to. Our school does randomly drug test students every once in a while but only a few of the athletes are chosen to take the test so that really is not helping ...
Many wonder how drugs can influence an athlete's performance in sports. Over the past few years, it has become more known and more common for athletes to use drugs to enhance their performance abilities. It has been becoming more common for athletes to overdose on drugs whether it being intentional or accidental. Many athletes who use performance enhancing drugs do not know the consequences or the damage the drugs can do to their body. Most athletes that use performance enhancing drugs are high school students. They believe that because their favorite professional athletes is using the enhancers that they are able to also. Athletes should be drug tested before every game to help reduce the use of drugs.
I think that the system where they only test high school athletes is good. These students and their parents are informed and have to sign consent papers. This means that all parties are informed of what is expected and the consequences. If we were to do this with all of the school, it will cost a lot money, time, and paper work to get the approval of parents. Random drug testing will cause major problems in school attendance. I honestly believe that some students would rather not go to school if they knew that they could be randomly selected. Teacher’s opinions and suspicions of a student can bring up issues as well. For example, a teacher can mistake a teenager going through a hard time as a student using drugs. This can cause more problems for the student. Issues like these will definitely cause mistrust between students and teachers. Despite being caught many students will still continue their drug use. I believe that they have to choose to stop their drug use or else it won’t work. Random drug testing might be able to work with a system that somehow informs everybody of what can happen and the process of the drug testing. This can involve a signed agreement of confidentiality between the faculty and families. Also referrals plan for the parents to use to help make a decision for their child if tested positive for drug
If given the chance to be the best in a sport, some athletes will risk everything and cheat. According to a study from the NCAA in 2007, 35% of college athletes start using steroids in college. College athletics are very competitive. In order to get ahead, athletes are using steroids. This is a problem for colleges across the United States. In fact, it’s difficult to see which college athletes are enhancing their performance by taking anabolic steroids or those who are not taking steroids. This is because many athletes train numerous hours on their own and with personal trainers to get ahead of the competition. The use of anabolic steroids is helping athletes achieve goals they never would on their own. Steroids ruin the purpose of playing
An example of an issue with mandatory drug testing was the Vernonia School Dist. 47J v. Acton case. In this case the Vernonia School District, which is located in Oregon, requires any student who wants to participate in activities such as athletics, for example football or basketball, to sign consent forms to allow for random drug testing throughout the particular sports season. One testing is at the beginning of the season and during the season every week the students are placed into a “pool” and 10% of the athletes are chosen for random drug testing. What happened in this case was a student by the name of James Acton wanted to play football for his school but in this school district the student and the par...
Today, drug use in sport has reached enormous proportions in society and is destroying athletics from the ground up. Nowhere is the problem more serious than in professional athletics, where athletes, coaches and trainers misuse drugs in search of ways of ways to improve performance. Many athletes fail to take their time when making the decision whether to use drugs to their advantage. Unfortunately athletes may use drugs for therapeutic indications, recreatio9nal or social reasons, as muscular aids or to mask the presence of other drugs during drug testing. But the safety of the athlete's health is being neglected. Drug use has led to an increased number of deaths and suspensions of athletes. Also, if this continues all athletes someday will have to choose whether to compete at a world-class level and take drugs, or compete at a club level and be clean. In sports, athletes, coaches and trainers will try their best to find a way to reach the top level. They not only search for a way to enhance performance...
Many high schools across the country have brought much attention to the idea of giving random drug tests to students in high school. The newfound interest in student drug testing may be as a result of recent polls, which have shown an increase in drug use among high school students. Many teachers, parents, and members of school comities are for the drug testing, while most students and some parents feel that this would be a violation of students rights as Americans, which is true.