D.A.R.E. graduation is a big deal

Published 12:00 am Wednesday, April 5, 2000

Fromstaff reports

Tuesday night saw the graduation of more than 350 area students from the D.

Wednesday, April 05, 2000

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Tuesday night saw the graduation of more than 350 area students from the D.A.R.E. program. Big deal, some folks might say – but to those 350 kids, and to their parents who packed the Knowlton Auditorium, and to the members of the D.A.R.E. team, it is a big deal.

The D.A.R.E. program seeks to educate our children about the dangers of drug and alcohol use, in an effort to steer them clear of it. It was one of the first programs to abandon the ostrich approach – that is, sticking one’s head in the sand and pretending a problem doesn’t exist - and look at drugs in a head on manner.

The program doesn’t just teach children that drugs are bad, it teaches them why they are bad, and it shows them alternatives to giving in to peer pressure.

By giving children a group of peers who also know the truth about drugs and who also say they won’t use them, it gives these children a strong foundation, hopefully one which will enable them to say ‘No,’ when the time comes.

So congratulations to these 350 students, and to their parents, and to the members of the D.A.R.E. team. It really is a big deal.