Arlington Has A Drug Problem - From Middle School to High School to Our Community at Large

[Anonymous]

Our local listserve just sent something about 20-30 teens at 1pm 10/14 drunk out of their minds. One so severely intoxicated that they needed medical intervention. The police detained some of the kids and they are working to identify all of the teens.

Jamestown Elementary school middle of the day—wtf!?!!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Our local listserve just sent something about 20-30 teens at 1pm 10/14 drunk out of their minds. One so severely intoxicated that they needed medical intervention. The police detained some of the kids and they are working to identify all of the teens.

Jamestown Elementary school middle of the day—wtf!?!!!

^^YHS area.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Our local listserve just sent something about 20-30 teens at 1pm 10/14 drunk out of their minds. One so severely intoxicated that they needed medical intervention. The police detained some of the kids and they are working to identify all of the teens.

Jamestown Elementary school middle of the day—wtf!?!!!

I got the same message. Nowhere did it say or insinuate that more than one person was "drunk out of their minds." Aside from the one kid who was "heavily intoxicated" it didn't characterize the state of inebriation of any of the kids. It said that there was evidence of alcohol consumption.

It doesn't help the situation at all for people to put their own spin on things. I'll echo the pp and say please let's deal with facts, not hyperbole.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's pretty telling that some on DCUM think that Langley and Mclean, which are even richer, whiter and more privileged, don't have similar rates of drug and alcohol use. (Must be those super-motivated Asian kids setting good examples!) While I would love to see the arrest stats for FCPS, it could just be an indicator that the YHS community is actually trying to do something about it.

Langley and McLean are not whiter than Yorktown. Langley is richer than YHS, and McLean is about the same as YHS.

I don't give YHS any special credit here, or think Langley/McLean are necessarily going out of their way to ignore issues. Area schools tend to be more reactive than proactive when it comes to student mental health or drug/alcohol use, and YHS just seems to have more to react to at this particular moment.

[Anonymous]

I also got that listserv message and it doesn't say anything of the sort. Only one child needed medical attention so how you would know they were "drunk out of their minds" is beyond me.

And they were playing football at the elementary school. The elementary school has nothing to do with it other than location.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I also got that listserv message and it doesn't say anything of the sort. Only one child needed medical attention so how you would know they were "drunk out of their minds" is beyond me.

And they were playing football at the elementary school. The elementary school has nothing to do with it other than location.

What type of listserv was this?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I also got that listserv message and it doesn't say anything of the sort. Only one child needed medical attention so how you would know they were "drunk out of their minds" is beyond me.

And they were playing football at the elementary school. The elementary school has nothing to do with it other than location.

What type of listserv was this?

It was posted on Nextdoor. Here's what was posted:

"On October 14, 2017, at approximately 1300 hours, officers responded to Jamestown Elementary School for a report of 20-30 teenagers drinking. Upon officer’s arrival, they encountered numerous teenagers playing a “Powder puff” football game. Some members of the group fled when they saw police. One student was found heavily intoxicated and required medical assistance. A small group of juveniles was detained by police. Evidence of alcohol consumption was located at the scene. The police department will be working with county school administrators and parents to identify all involved juveniles and ensure service referrals and appropriate enforcement actions are completed."

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Our local listserve just sent something about 20-30 teens at 1pm 10/14 drunk out of their minds. One so severely intoxicated that they needed medical intervention. The police detained some of the kids and they are working to identify all of the teens.

Jamestown Elementary school middle of the day—wtf!?!!!

I got the same message. Nowhere did it say or insinuate that more than one person was "drunk out of their minds." Aside from the one kid who was "heavily intoxicated" it didn't characterize the state of inebriation of any of the kids. It said that there was evidence of alcohol consumption.

It doesn't help the situation at all for people to put their own spin on things. I'll echo the pp and say please let's deal with facts, not hyperbole.

My kid talked to some who were there. Many kids were drunk and stoned, but not all who were there were partying. At least one high schooler was arrested for something involving drugs. This all happened before the game ever started and it was never played.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Our local listserve just sent something about 20-30 teens at 1pm 10/14 drunk out of their minds. One so severely intoxicated that they needed medical intervention. The police detained some of the kids and they are working to identify all of the teens.

Jamestown Elementary school middle of the day—wtf!?!!!

I got the same message. Nowhere did it say or insinuate that more than one person was "drunk out of their minds." Aside from the one kid who was "heavily intoxicated" it didn't characterize the state of inebriation of any of the kids. It said that there was evidence of alcohol consumption.

It doesn't help the situation at all for people to put their own spin on things. I'll echo the pp and say please let's deal with facts, not hyperbole.

My kid talked to some who were there. Many kids were drunk and stoned, but not all who were there were partying. At least one high schooler was arrested for something involving drugs. This all happened before the game ever started and it was never played.

Also the Yorktown principal sent out an email today, which in part said:

It has come to my attention that several of our students participated in or attended a Powder Puff football game this weekend. At the game, it has been reported that several of the students who participated or attended the game also engaged in use of substances and drank alcohol to excess.

[Anonymous]

For everyone wringing their hands about Yorktown, I have to ask you, what would be fundamentally different for you if your child went to another high school vs. if they went to Yorktown? Would you not pay attention for signs of drinking and/or drug use? Do you believe it doesn't happen in other schools? Even if it's easier to find at Yorktown, do you believe your child couldn't find it at other schools? Obviously the Jamestown incident needs to be taken seriously, but to me as a parent it doesn't change anything. I know my kid can find alcohol and/or drugs anywhere, and it's my job as a parent to watch for signs and educate my child about risky behavior. If my child were involved in an incident like that obviously we'd have to deal with it appropriately, but knowing this happened changes nothing about how I parent my child or what risks I think they're exposed to at school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For everyone wringing their hands about Yorktown, I have to ask you, what would be fundamentally different for you if your child went to another high school vs. if they went to Yorktown? Would you not pay attention for signs of drinking and/or drug use? Do you believe it doesn't happen in other schools? Even if it's easier to find at Yorktown, do you believe your child couldn't find it at other schools? Obviously the Jamestown incident needs to be taken seriously, but to me as a parent it doesn't change anything. I know my kid can find alcohol and/or drugs anywhere, and it's my job as a parent to watch for signs and educate my child about risky behavior. If my child were involved in an incident like that obviously we'd have to deal with it appropriately, but knowing this happened changes nothing about how I parent my child or what risks I think they're exposed to at school.

I prefer a school that isn’t making parenting exponentially harder. Sure, it’s everywhere. I just don’t want my kid in a school where homecoming activities can’t even be enjoyed. They didn’t even play the game? Pathetic.

[Anonymous]

Arlington has a parent problem- from middle school through high school. Kids at Williamsburg and Yorktown have been drinking and doing lots of drugs since long before I was there in the mid-1980’s and did lots of both. It was never “a problem” until today’s naive parents labeled it as such.kids have been drinking and doing drugs since the first high scool ever opened and its not going to Change.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I also got that listserv message and it doesn't say anything of the sort. Only one child needed medical attention so how you would know they were "drunk out of their minds" is beyond me.

And they were playing football at the elementary school. The elementary school has nothing to do with it other than location.

What type of listserv was this?

It was posted on Nextdoor. Here's what was posted:

"On October 14, 2017, at approximately 1300 hours, officers responded to Jamestown Elementary School for a report of 20-30 teenagers drinking. Upon officer’s arrival, they encountered numerous teenagers playing a “Powder puff” football game. Some members of the group fled when they saw police. One student was found heavily intoxicated and required medical assistance. A small group of juveniles was detained by police. Evidence of alcohol consumption was located at the scene. The police department will be working with county school administrators and parents to identify all involved juveniles and ensure service referrals and appropriate enforcement actions are completed."

When I attended Yorktown in the 90s kids would party in the Taylor parking lot or the Glebe Road park.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For everyone wringing their hands about Yorktown, I have to ask you, what would be fundamentally different for you if your child went to another high school vs. if they went to Yorktown? Would you not pay attention for signs of drinking and/or drug use? Do you believe it doesn't happen in other schools? Even if it's easier to find at Yorktown, do you believe your child couldn't find it at other schools? Obviously the Jamestown incident needs to be taken seriously, but to me as a parent it doesn't change anything. I know my kid can find alcohol and/or drugs anywhere, and it's my job as a parent to watch for signs and educate my child about risky behavior. If my child were involved in an incident like that obviously we'd have to deal with it appropriately, but knowing this happened changes nothing about how I parent my child or what risks I think they're exposed to at school.

I prefer a school that isn’t making parenting exponentially harder. Sure, it’s everywhere. I just don’t want my kid in a school where homecoming activities can’t even be enjoyed. They didn’t even play the game? Pathetic.

It had nothing to do with homecoming, which is next weekend. It was a privately organized event that was not sponsored or sanctioned by the school, although it appears to be something of a "tradition." Try to get your facts straight before you freak out; you will be taken more seriously.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Arlington has a parent problem- from middle school through high school. Kids at Williamsburg and Yorktown have been drinking and doing lots of drugs since long before I was there in the mid-1980’s and did lots of both. It was never “a problem” until today’s naive parents labeled it as such.kids have been drinking and doing drugs since the first high scool ever opened and its not going to Change.

Seriously. You can't imagine the amount of drugs and alcohol circulating my prep school in the 80's. Lot's of pearl clutching on these boards.