New Drug Education Program Waiting in Wings

The drug prevention program that law enforcement officers have delivered to youngsters nationwide for decades could change significantly after a University of Akron study concludes this year.

The DARE program started in Los Angeles in 1983 with little, if any, research to support its curriculum and delivery method. Still, the program spread nationally and is now taught in every state and 43 countries. Fayette County implemented DARE as a pilot program in 1986, then as part of all public elementary school curricula the next year.

Researchers at the University of Akron created an evidence-based, research-driven drug prevention curriculum and delivery method after receiving a grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

DARE officers have been used to test the curriculum, although the study is independent of the well-known drug prevention program.

But DARE is expected to adopt this new drug prevention program after analysis concludes this year. Akron’s curriculum is being evaluated in Detroit, Houston, Los Angeles, New Orleans, Newark and St. Louis with about 19,000 students followed from seventh through 11th grades.

The new program would be taught to seventh- and ninth-graders, because research suggests most first-time drug use occurs among students in the eighth and 10th grades. DARE programs start in the fifth grade.

"Most kids in the fifth grade don’t try drugs for the first time," said John Carnevale, president of Carnevale Associates, which promotes awareness of the study.

The new program also uses simulations to promote interaction among students.

Preliminary results from the study show DARE officers are equal to or better than teachers in delivering substance abuse prevention information. And the study has found the curriculum has a significant impact on students’ typical beliefs about drug and alcohol use.

Principal investigator Zili Sloboda noted DARE has a system in place to quickly train officers and monitor quality of delivery. "Simply put, there is no comparable national prevention delivery network like DARE in the U.S."

The study could help all DARE schools become eligible for federal funding for the program if it’s proven effective.

In Kentucky, funding sources for DARE vary.

In Lexington, the police department absorbs most of the cost, while Fayette County schools help with training officers. In Anderson County, the sheriff’s office pays for everything. In Scott County, the schools pay for everything, spending about $33,000 last year.