Student Drug Testing

Accu-Chem provides drug testing services to over 50 school districts in Texas and many others nationwide. These programs vary from volunteer programs to mandatory testing of all students in athletics and extracurricular activities.

Accu-Chem has continued to be the leader in school testing programs supported by the most advanced technology in the industry.

What is the legality of student drug testing?

Vernonia School District v. Acton, 515 U.S. 646 (1995) Applying Skinner and Von Raab, a divided Supreme Court upheld as constitutional a school district policy which required students to consent to random drug testing as a condition for participation in interscholastic athletics. Balancing the student's expectations of privacy and the nature of the test's intrusion against the government's interest in drug-free schools, the Court held that the drug policy did not violate the Fourth Amendment given such factors as: the athletes' relatively low expectation of privacy (e.g. due to the requirements of communal undress and preseason physical exams); the fact that the athletes were leaders in the school's drug culture, which was "in a state of rebellion";and that the tests were "directed more narrowly to drug use by thletes, where the risk of immediate physical harm to the drug user or those with whom he is playing his sport is particularly high."

In Board Of Ed. Of Independent School Dist.no. 92 Of Pottawatomie Cty. V. Earls Justice Thomas delivered the opinion of the Court.

" The Student Activities Drug Testing Policy implemented by the Board of Education of Independent School District No. 92 of Pottawatomie County (School District) requires all students who participate in competitive extracurricular activities to submit to drug testing. Because this Policy reasonably serves the School District's important interest in detecting and preventing drug use among its students, we hold that it is constitutional."

Who should be tested?

Accu-Chem Laboratories works in conjunction with each school district screening only those students who are involved in competitive extracurricular activities. Specimen collection is usually performed by the lab and can be performed by the school nurse or a qualified faculty or staff member. Each school district has implemented different policies for those students who test positive for drugs and/or alcohol. Random testing of these students will occur throughout the school year in order to assure their drug free status.

Who to test depends on many factors. These factors include your purpose for testing, your budget, and legal issues. Your purpose for testing needs to justify the group you are testing. For example, if the reason for a testing program is primarily to reduce the risk of physical harm, there should be reasonable evidence that the group you are testing is at risk of physical harm and at greater risk if using drugs. If your primary purpose is to keep the playing field level in sports competition, the group you are testing should be involved in sports competition. If testing athletes, the purpose should identify the reasons you are testing this group, and if testing all school activity participants, the purpose should explain why. The purpose may also determine which drugs are to be tested. Random selection is one way to determine who from the population group is required to undergo testing. Randomly selecting individuals for testing lowers the number of tests and therefore the cost of the drug-testing program. Random selection also means that any individual would have an equal chance of being chosen for any testing period. If testing is done frequently, with short or no notice, and on a year-round basis, the chance of being selected at any time and caught if using screened drugs can deter drug use. Testing everyone at every selected testing period may have more of deterrent effect, but would also be far more costly if done at the same intervals as random testing.

What drugs should we test for?

Amphetamines
Barbiturates
Benzodiazepines
Cocaine
Marijuana
Methadone
Methaqualone
Opiates
Phencyclidine
Propoxyphene

Many other chemical substances can be detected in the urine, and considering the drug-use patterns of today's youth, the following additional drug screens can be ordered:

Alcohol
Anabolic Steroids
Ecstasy
LSD
Nicotine (Tobacco)

How do we decide who will do the testing?

There are many laboratories, both local and national, that advertise the ability to do urine drug testing. However, not every lab uses the same methods of testing nor are they all certified to perform urine drug screens. It is critical that the laboratory be certified by The College of American Pathologists (CAP) Forensic Urine Drug Testing (FUDT) program.In addition, the laboratory must have comprehensive professional liability insurance.

How is the testing done?

There are two levels of analysis that occur routinely with urine drug abuse screens. The sample is first subjected to an automated screening test that quickly looks for the presence of specified drugs or their metabolites. This initial testing uses a highly accurate immunoassay technique commonly called an EMIT. All presumptive positive results should be confirmed by a Gas Chromatography / Mass Spectroscopy (GC/MS) confirmatory tests. This confirmation method provides a "molecular fingerprint" of the drug and/or metabolite, providing a high level of accuracy and specificity. The quantitative results, in nanograms per milliliter, are usually reported as well.

Currently, the GC/MS confirmatory test is the only court acceptable method for drug screen confirmations.

How much does drug screening cost?

The cost and accuracy of drug testing depends on a number of factors. The testing methods used to screen for various drugs are a primary factor in determining cost and accuracy.

Two general methods of testing are immunoassay (EMIT) or radioimmunoassay (RIA) and Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC/MS). Immunoassay is used for initial screening of many drugs, like amphetamines, marijuana (Cannabinoids or THC), cocaine, opiates, and phencyclidine (PCP). However, GC/MS is the acceptable industry standard testing procedure for steroids and for confirming any positive test results. The cost for each immunoassay-screening package ordered to test for all the drugs listed above typically costs $12 to $14. To also test for alcohol, nicotine (tobacco), and LSD typically adds another $10 to $50 per substance per screening test ordered. Including anabolic steroids in the initial screening would cost between $80 and $120 per test ordered because GC/MS is required to test for steroids and is a more expensive testing procedure. All positive results of initial tests should be confirmed by GC/MS. Thus, a higher percentage of initial positives drive up the cost of a testing program.

Policy Development

Identify and document that a drug problem exists and specify any involvement of specific groups of students.

1. Drug and Alcohol Surveys
2. Monitoring the Future Study
3. Back to School Survey

Demonstrate that your athletes are part of the problem (if you plan to have a mandatory athlete testing program).

Document reports from coaches and team members with dates and details.

Familiarize yourself with the legal precedence for student (athlete) drug testing.

1. Vernonia School District v. Acton, 515 U.S. 646 (1995)
2. Board Of Ed. Of Independent School Dist.no. 92 Of Pottawatomie Cty. V. Earls

Set up a Community Task Force.

Include Ministerial, Police Department, Parents, Administrators, Teachers, Students, Coaches, School Physician, School Nurse, Board of Education Members.

Understand Pros and Cons of a Drug Testing Program:

Possible Types of Programs include Mandatory, Voluntary, and Reasonable Suspicion. Mandatory programs are usually for students participating in athletics or all extra-curricular activities and offer the most deterrence.

Draft a Policy

Sample policies are available from Accu-Chem Laboratories.

Legal Review

Enlist legal counsel to ensure that all policy is in compliance with applicable Federal, State and local laws.

Seek Community Support

Build community support for the policy by holding open meetings where views can be aired and differences resolved.

Enforce your Policy

Enforce established polices against alcohol and other drugs fairly and consistently. Ensure adequate security measures to eliminate drugs from school premises and school functions. Ensure that everyone understands the policy and the procedures that will be followed in case of infractions. Make copies of school policy available to all parents, teachers, coaches and students. Publicize the policy throughout the school and community.

More information can be found here.