Reply to MCPS to Address Opioid/Fentanyl Crisis

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I don't understand the haters.

A public school system with limited enforcement capabilities just cannot deal with drugs. All they can do, and they do it very well, is INFORM, both parents and students.

I am satisfied with this response. Already I feel they've gone above and beyond. Public schools cannot strip search every single student daily. Pills are tiny and don't show up on metal detectors![/quote]

+1. The school is providing education and information to both students and parents.  They are warning people of the dangers because sometimes(a lot of times) being informed repeatedly helps to engage the consciousness of a person(this is why we teach kids healthy habits).  Also by informing parents and the community, parents will hopefully have more and meaningful conversation with the kids.  The community will hopefully be in the lookout for things that could indicate drug use and or people selling to kids. MCPS is not going to be able to get drugs off the streets nor are they going to do a full on search of every kid every school day, nor are they going to monitor kids outside of school.  What more does anyone expect them to do?[/quote]

What more could MCPS do?

1) Enhance and increase security staff monitoring of bathrooms where much of the drug use is taking place

2) Enhance the disciplinary policy so that it meaningfully deters kids from using substances on campus

3) Establish a dedicated task force or unit within MCPS under its student wellbeing department to deal with those who use drugs on campus so that they are intercepted early and before their substance abuse and the chaos associated with it spill over to the non-using student population

4) Develop more meaningful systems to early detect (adding smoke detectors in the bathroom for example, that are tuned for marijuana and other substance smoke)

5) Developing a tight relationship with MCPD to investigate and filter out suspected distributors on campus

I mean, these are just 5 things I thought of off the top of my head. It isn't hard to start thinking about could be done differently if you actually care about the safety and wellbeing of the kids.

But if you're more interested in defending the status quo at MCPS, or maybe feel that any criticism of MCPS is unfounded and unfair because you have some ridiculous loyalties to the system, then you'll lack for imagination.

There are literally people who get paid a full-time salary whose job titles include "student safety & wellbeing" and "security" and you're asking why people expect MCPS to do anything. Unreal.[/quote]

1) With what funding and people
2) What would that look like? Detention, Suspension, Expulsion… you know these things that exist as policy today and have for decades.  Yet kids still use drugs.
3) Again, with what funding and people?  Counselors already have heavy case loads and they are exactly who would be needed in such a task force.  Further, given that MCPs is currently waging its own public health campaign alongside MoCo, what makes you believe they haven’t already convened a committtee with this exact goal.
4) Because folks just wouldn’t tamper with these smoke detectors, causing damage to systems and necessitating repairs?  So additional cost for installation, monitoring, replacement 
5) Fairly certain MCPS already has a tight relationship w/MCPD.

Throwing out ideas is easy.  It’s thinking about the efficiency, efficacy, legality, implementation, and cost that takes work.  [/quote]

1) There was an increase of funding for virtual tutoring options to combat the learning loss, some $2 million, even though only 15% of kids are using. So there's some funds that could be reallocated to start. But you didn't want to engage in any problem solving, you just wanted to be a negative nancy because you benefit or think the status quo is acceptable for some reason.

2) Do I work in education policy? I believe those ideas and potential solutions would be up to the experts and professionals who are supposed to be tasked with managing and overseeing student discipline. Some mix of the above makes sense to me. If those exist and are failing to deter the unwanted behavior, it sounds like some new mix of those tactics or new ideas should be considered.

3) Didn't MCPS invest millions in hiring and increasing the number of counselors and psychologists for precisely this reason?

4) Do you not install fire alarms because kids will tamper with them? Your argument here is ridiculous and you know it.

5) Actually, no. The SROs being pulled by Elrich created distance and loosened the community and information sharing on a school-by-school basis. Again, you're just being obtuse for the sake of it.[/quote]

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