Johnston schools roll out new substance abuse policies

While the state considers legalizing marijuana, and with Gov. Gina Raimondo recently referring to Rhode Island’s growing heroin and opioid problem as a “crisis,” Johnston’s public schools have been taking additional steps to ensure their students and athletes lead healthier lifestyles.

Patricia Sweet is the Director of Youth Prevention at Tri-County Community Action Agency, a non-profit community service agency, which provides programs, services and support to individuals and families throughout the area.

Funded by state, federal and other grants, along with private contributions, Sweet and the Johnston Prevention Coalition have for the past several years created initiatives in town to educate students and their families about the dangers of substance abuse. Recently, she’s worked with the schools to create a stronger alcohol, tobacco and drug policy for athletes while introducing a program called Life of an Athlete, which centers on athletic codes of conduct.

“This is a community-wide program that we’re fortunate enough to have the funds for, but also most fortunate for the school to allow us to do this, which I think is a huge thing,” said Sweet. “What a great town for caring about their youth and teams and bringing this program in and allowing us to have it.”

The Life of an Athlete program was developed by John Underwood, a former NCAA All American distance runner who specializes in recovery, peak training and lifestyle impact on mental and physical performance. Underwood has worked with the NFL and NBA, and he is a consultant for the Navy Seals. He developed Life of an Athlete programs specifically for schools.

“A component of his training actually focuses on brain development, how sleep is important for athletics and retention in school, for example,” said Sweet.

She added that the program gets parents, athletes, athletic directors and schools involved to show children how detrimental substance abuse is to life and performance. The Tri-Town Community Action Agency presented the program to the school district, and it was approved by the School Committee in December.

The program establishes mandatory seasonal meetings for parents and athletes to discuss the conditions of their involvement in sports; codes of conduct, including strategies for behavior and the non-negotiable conditions of being part of an athletic team; training and workshops for coaches to help them understand and promote positive lifestyle choices; and youth leadership by developing student team leaders.

“We’re getting coaches on board. We’ve had trainings with the coaches, so that they obtain the information,” said Sweet.

A revised alcohol, tobacco and drug policy was also developed through the program. According to Sweet, the difference with this policy as opposed to others is what happens if students are caught with illegal substances.

“Developing an athletic policy is really a big part of this, because rules are clearly defined and more specific,” she said. “We’ve developed a policy that tells the student that if they are caught with alcohol, tobacco or substances what has to happen.”

A 2014 Rhode Island Department of Education SurveyWorks reported that 11.1 percent of Johnston’s high school students were under the influence of alcohol at school during the previous 12 months, 67.4 percent had used marijuana in the previous 30 days and 62.4 percent had misused prescription drugs in the previous 30 days.

Following an athlete’s first policy violation, whether on or off school grounds, a student would receive a four-competitive-week suspension from participating in interscholastic competitions. After seven days, and with the approval of the student’s guardians, coach, athletic director and principal, athletes may resume practice with the team.

Should a second violation occur, the student would be suspended from competing for one year. According to the policy, reinstatement after a second violation requires a majority vote from a committee made of the superintendent, the school principal, athletic director, each of the head coaches from teams that the student is a member and a substance abuse professional. Decisions made by the committee may be appealed to the School Committee.

A third violation makes a student ineligible to participate in interscholastic competition. Following two years of this suspension, the decision may be appealed to the School Committee for reinstatement.

The policy applies to all athletes, and violations are cumulative throughout 6th through 12th grade.

An additional component of the plan is called a parent or guardian “code night,” which the athletes and their guardians attend together. Sweet plans to hold that meeting in August. There, parents sign a commitment form, which provides guidelines for parent/coach interactions, watching their child’s game and how to approach their child about drugs and alcohol.

Sweet said a web page will soon be created that will piggyback off the district’s site. Posted there will be guides for coaches and captains, dietary needs, along with sleep and recovery guides. The district also provides a copy of the revised policy for athletes on their website. Sweet said she wants to keep lines of communication open regarding the changes.

“It’s about educating. I’m very much into educating,” said Sweet. “Having great schools like these to work with is key, and we can make a difference.”