Action Plan
in the Fight Against Drugs 

Despite health curriculums and PSAs widely denouncing drugs for their negative effects, substance use and abuse in MCPS only seems to be rising. I have been very vocal about my opposition to drugs in our schools, and when I am SMOB I will make tackling substance abuse one of my top priorities.

In the effort to address drug use in schools, we need to expand both preventative and reactive measures. Though the MCPS health curriculum includes a certain degree of substance abuse education, more time should be dedicated specifically to the dangers of vaping, which has become the most common form of drug use in schools. Frankly, students are unlikely to be using drugs like heroin and methamphetamine, and for many, vaping is seen as relatively safe. Expanding the health curriculum to be clear and repetitive about the potential harm of vapes is the first step we need to take to reduce the most common form of substance abuse at the root.

In addition to such preventative measures, MCPS must create strict guidlines, organized in a similar fashion to the existing Personal Mobile Device policy, that would structure consequences for drug use in schools. Currently, there exists no countywide policy for students caught using substances in schools, but with a policy of this sort, we will certainly see a dramatic decrease in recorded drug use. 

Consequences should be structured in tiers to ensure harsher results on repeat offenders. In-school suspension, notification to parents, and suspension from school sports teams are all examples of reprecussions that can be implemented into such a structure, and if the rules are enforced to the letter, we can restore confidence in the idea that MCPS does not tolerate drugs in schools, and scale back policies like removing or forcing open bathroom doors for the explict purpose of being able to peer inside.

The rules are simple: MCPS must be a county in which all students can feel safe and welcomed. As your SMOB I will uphold this integral promise of our school system, and we will curb the growing MCPS drug problem together.