School Drug Testing
The Supreme Court established the legality for school drug testing in 2002 for students involved in athletics, glee-club, cheerleading, and many other school-sponsored pursuits. Despite its legality, many believe drug testing in school is not only ineffective, it is also insidious in many ways.
In 2018, a College Station school board unanimously approved a policy that would implement random drug test for those students involved in extracurricular activities, as well as for any students who park on campus (those with a parking permit). Further, for students who did not fall into either category, their parents could request they be included in the random drug testing.
The policy stated that the random drug tests would be conducted on “as many as nine dates,” throughout the school year. At the time of each random drug test, no less than forty, and no more than 90 students would be selected, using a “random selection method). A positive drug test would result in parent notification, a required retest on the next three random dates, and, perhaps, ineligibility to participate in extracurricular activities or receive a parking permit.
ACLU Says There is No Concrete Evidence that Random Drug Tests Deter Student Drug Use
The ACLU says random drug testing rarely deters student drug use, and that, depending on the laws in individual states, the right to privacy may be infringed on when random drug testing is implemented. Many high schools randomly drug test athletes, but few high schools randomly drug test other students.
The American Academy of Pediatrics is also against random drug testing in high schools, stating the evidence does not show its effectiveness. Further, the AAP believes random drug testing, while possibly an infringement on privacy rights, can definitely damage relationships between students and their schools.
The Supreme Court established the legality for school drug testing in 2002 for students involved in athletics, glee-club, cheerleading, and many other school-sponsored pursuits. Despite its legality, many believe drug testing in school is not only ineffective, it is also insidious in many ways.
Students who receive a suspension or expulsion for a positive drug test are even more likely to use drugs—and less likely to finish their high school education. Students that fear a positive drug test result might also turn to other substances that are not as easily detectable on a drug screen.
So, even though the Supreme Court gave the green light to schools as far as drug testing those students involved in extracurricular activities, what about parental consent? After all, parents are required to sign a consent form for minor children who want to get a tattoo, need medical treatment, or want to get married.
It seems inconceivable that parental consent would not be required for a random drug test. This is why permission for random drug testing is generally a part of the consent form parents sign to allow their child to participate in any extracurricular activity. What about drug testing students apart from extracurricular activity participation? If there is a reasonable suspicion that a student is under the influence drugs, case law suggests a school may test the student.
If, however, the school’s policy is too broad, i.e., testing a student based on gossip, the parents and the student could have a civil rights claim against the school. For more information regarding random student drug testing, see our website.