How to address an increase in students attending school under the influence of drugs?

On Wednesday, March 19, 7-8:30 p.m., Dr. Leslie Walker, Chief of Adolescent Medicine at Seattle Children’s Hospital, will provide parents with information about how marijuana, alcohol, and other drugs affect teen health and development and what parents can do support healthy teen decision-making.  This parent education forum will be held at Roosevelt High School, 1410 NE 66^th Street. 

The event is part of a multi-pronged approach to address an increase in Roosevelt High School student use of substances, particularly marijuana, during school hours.  According to a letter that was sent to families of RHS freshmen, this year the school is “experiencing an increase in students being under the influence and/or in possession of marijuana/alcohol at school or school related activities.  In fact, our discipline incidents with respect to marijuana/alcohol use are double what they were this time last year.” 

Roosevelt High School is not unique.  Other Seattle high schools are reporting an increase in students attending school under the influence and an increase in the number of vaporizers confiscated.  (Vaporizers may be used to ingest THC or nicotine – both prohibited on school grounds.)  As noted in an earlier post, Seattle students attend school under the influence of drugs at rates higher than the King County and State averages.