Drug and Drug Abuse Education 6-29

School Board of the City of Virginia Beach
Policy 6-29

INSTRUCTION

Drug and Drug Abuse Education

The illegal and inappropriate use of certain substances constitutes a hazard to the development of students. Elementary and secondary schools shall include in the health education program instruction in drugs and drug abuse.

1. Program of Instruction

   During the school year the curriculum of the School Division, grades 1 through 10, will incorporate education concerning drugs and drug abuse. New material concerned with the use of substances which modify mood and behavior of the individual will be employed.

   Throughout the entire curriculum health shall be emphasized using a comprehensive, generalized concept. Health, in the educational sense, is viewed as a quality of life involving dynamic interaction and interdependence among the individual's physical well-being, mental and emotional outlook, and the society in which the individual lives. The primary objective of the curriculum is to prepare students to make wise decisions regarding their behavior and health patterns.

   Accordingly, the Superintendent or designee will develop drug and drug abuse programs that will:

   1. Be concerned with education and prevention in all areas of substance use and abuse.
   2. Establish and maintain a realistic, meaningful substance abuse prevention and education program that shall be developed and incorporated in the total education program.
   3. Establish and maintain an ongoing in-service substance abuse prevention program for all school personnel.
   4. Cooperate with government and approved private agencies involved with health of students relating to the abuse of substances.
   5. Encourage and support pupil-run organizations and activities that will develop a positive peer influence in the area of substance abuse.
   6. Create a climate whereby students may seek and receive counseling about substance abuse and related problems without fear of reprisal.
2. Competencies

   The required program of instruction should be reasonably expected to develop the following competencies in all students:

   1. The ability to distinguish between factual and nonfactual information about drugs and alcohol contained in commercial advertising and other print and visual media;
   2. The ability to describe the possible contributing causes of drug, alcohol and tobacco dependency and the physiological affects on various parts of the body and on the body system;
   3. The ability to explain the reasons for laws and ordinances controlling the manufacture, distribution, and use of drugs;
   4. The ability to identify the most commonly used drugs, the major substance classification of each and the corresponding medical use of each classification;
   5. The ability to identify the various health related organizations and agencies at the local, county and state levels providing diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation and emergency services to the drug and alcohol abuser;
   6. The ability to explain the possible uses of alcohol in our daily living and how the proper use of drugs has been beneficial to mankind.
3. Staff Development Program

   Professional staff development programs concerning current practices and research relating to drug abuse education will be provided annually for all teachers and administrators.

4. Community Cooperation

   The School Board believes that drug education is a continuous development process. The school shares responsibility for the process with the home, the church, and community agencies. Removal of the basic causes of drug abuse is recognized-as a responsibility shared by parents/legal guardians, students, citizens, related agencies and the School Division. The School Board will continue to make every effort to inform students, families and other citizens of the drug abuse education program and to cooperate with other agencies and community groups who are at work on this problem.

Legal Reference

Code of Virginia § 22.1-206, as amended. Instruction concerning drugs, alcohol, substance abuse, and tobacco and nicotine products, and gambling.

Code of Virginia § 22.1-207, as amended. Physical and health education.

Virginia Board of Education Rules Governing Instructions Concerning Drugs and Substance Abuse. 8VAC20-310-10, as amended.

Adopted by School Board: May 18, 1979
Amended by School Board: August 21, 1990
Amended by School Board: July 16, 1991
Amended by School Board: July 13, 1993 (Effective August 14, 1993)
Amended by School Board: June 6, 2006
Amended by School Board: September 13, 2022