The Rio Rancho school board voted unanimously this week to approve random drug testing for student-athletes. The district’s athletic director says this is not a punishment, but rather a deterrent. While there have been a number of questions and concerns raised in regards to this, I think it’s a good idea and a good start. It is a start, meaning that it should not be limited to just student-athletes, but rather the whole range of students. Drugs and alcohol is not just a problem for athletes; it is a much broader issue. In this case, the athletic director, Bruce Carver, took the initiative and got this done. Will it really be an incentive for students to “say no”? We will see. Is it a waste of money and just a smoke screen, as some have suggested? We will see. I personally don’t think so, and I am OK with the district investing some money to try to keep kids off of drugs. I hope this will go along with an educational platform and counseling opportunities. Bottom line to me, this is a start. It is a school district that seems to want to do SOMETHING to address a problem that is killing kids. And I’m all for that.
