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' Ue\1Ct, F.~.V http:~iwvw,dmneto~g,-ll.~fLE, Faq.hm~i <br /> DRC/Vet <br /> ~.v, <br /> A Different Look at DARE <br /> Drug Abuse Resistance Education <br /> (DARE) Fact Sheet <br /> DARE is a school-based anti-drug curriculum from the Los Angeles Police Department and <br /> Unified School District. DARE was originated by ex-Chief Daryl Gates in order to place <br /> police officers in our schools. With the support of local law enforcement, DARE has grown <br /> into an expensive program that consumes upwards of $700 million federal, state, and local <br /> tax dollars each year. <br /> Dces DARE keep child~rn off of drugs? What trends an shown by nationwide ,surveys of adolescent drug <br /> usel <br /> Researcher Lloyd Johnston of the University of Michigan conducts the nationwide <br /> "Monitoring the Ruture" Survey each year for drug use trends. A third ofeight-graders, <br /> mostly 13-year olds, report using illegal drugs. Marijuana use more than doubled anion g <br /> eight-graders between 1991 and 1994. Two-thirds of eight-graders have tried alcohol. A <br /> quarter say they still drink. Twenty-eight percent say they have been drunk at least once. <br /> Smoking among eight-graders rose 30% between 1991 and 1994. If DARE is effective on a <br /> national basis, should not these trends be in the opposite direction? Lloyd Johnston said, "I <br /> have to conclude that DARE has had little or no effect except to give police officers <br /> something to do." [Las Vegas Sun, 5/1-2/94] An editorial in the Worcester, Mass. Telegram <br /> lamented: "Chie disturbing fact: While DARE has expanded, drug abuse and cigarette <br /> smoking among young people have increased nationwide." [Sunday Telegram, 1/28/96]. <br /> What do scientific evaluations of the DARE program indicate? Is the research valid? <br /> Although DARE supporters aze quick to claim "popularity saving only one child <br /> positive relations with the police valid evaluations of DARE consistently show no <br /> program effectiveness in the primary objective of "keeping kids off drugs.' Numer ous <br /> studies show that some DARE students [males and suburban children) are more likely to use <br /> drugs as compared to non-DARE students. These disturbing findings document the dreaded <br /> "boomerang effect", or an outcome exactly opposite that desired. The Res eazch Triangle <br /> Institute [RTI -Durham, NC 919-541-6000] was commissioned by the Department of <br /> <br /> ' Justice to evaluate DARE. Although passing extensive peer review for validity, the RTI study <br /> was rejected by both Justice and DARE [USA Today, 10/4/94, p2A]. T he RTI findings <br /> were published in the American Journal of Public Health [9/94 p 1399], and showed that <br /> <br />