_Recommendation #8:_
Reach out to the community for support and assistance in making the
school's antidrug policy and program work. Develop collaborative
arrangements in which school personnel, parents, school boards, law
enforcement officers, treatment organizations, and private groups can
work together to provide necessary resources.
School officials should recognize that they cannot solve the drug
problem alone. They need to get the community behind their efforts by
taking action to:
. Increase community understanding of the problem through meetings,
media coverage, and education programs.
. Build public support for the policy; develop agreement on the goals
of a school drug policy, including prevention and enforcement
goals.
. Educate the community about the effects and extent of the drug
problem.
. Strengthen contacts with law enforcement agencies through
discussions about the school's specific drug problems and ways
they can assist in drug education and enforcement.
. Call on local professionals, such as physicians and pharmacists, to
share their expertise on drug abuse as class lecturers.
. Mobilize the resources of community groups and local businesses to
support the program.
_WHAT STUDENTS CAN DO_