Students at Cape Elizabeth High School have asked the School Board to soften the district’s substance abuse policies, delaying punishments and specifically exempting from disciplinary action students who attend parties but do not themselves drink, smoke or do drugs.

The board last revised the rules in 2002, and is considering the students’ request in a new review of the policies, one of which governs substance abuse by student-athletes and one of which governs all students.

Cape Elizabeth Athletic Director Keith Weatherbie said at a Monday meeting to review them that many substance abuse policies have been used in the Cape schools. He said the current policies, which include a lighter punishment for students who turn themselves in, have worked the best.

High school junior Mary Cox, the incoming Student Advisory Council president, said the existing policies are unclear in places.

At present, student-athletes sign a year-long contract, even if they play just one season. In the contract, they agree not to use, possess or transport alcohol, tobacco or drugs at any time.

For the first violation, athletes are suspended from the team for the whole season, unless the student turns himself in, in which case the suspension is only for two games or matches. The student must also meet with a social worker before playing again.

For the second violation, the athlete is thrown off all teams for the rest of the school year. There is no provision for third or subsequent offenses.

Students in extracurricular activities are presumed to be governed by the same rules as athletes, but without having to sign a contract.

Tinkham said the only consequences that apply to all students are those regarding substance abuse on campus or at school-sponsored events. There are no consequences for students who are not involved in any extracurricular activity, if they are caught drinking outside of school.

Students ask for change

The SAC has proposed that student-athletes sign a contract for each sports season separately. For a first offense against the policy, an athlete would be suspended from the next few games, depending on how much of the season remains, but would still be able to practice with the team, if the coach allowed it. There would be no “credit” for self-referral.

A second offense would result in suspension from the team for the rest of the season, and a third offense would bar the student from sports for the rest of the year.

The students’ proposed policy would apply similarly to those in extracurricular activities, and would specifically note that students who don’t use, but are in places where others are using, are not subject to sanction.

One problem with separate contracts as proposed by the students, Tinkham said, is that a spring athlete could use alcohol during the fall without consequences.

School Board member Trish Brigham, who chairs the subcommittee, said the law firm Drummond Woodsum and MacMahon had reviewed the two existing policies and raised several concerns, including discrepancies between the two policies and vague language contained within the athletic substance abuse policy that could be open to interpretation.

Committee members will next meet in the fall, and may have a public forum to allow the wider community to participate. They hope to have a draft of a new policy ready for the School Board by Thanksgiving.

“It’s unfortunate, because we wanted (the changes) in effect by next year,” Cox said. But they are not naA? ?ve, she said. “We don’t want to rush it and have to revise it in a few years.” Cox said the student government finished their proposal in January, but the process of bringing it to the School Board was more complicated than they assumed.

In the fall, they will discuss several aspects of the policies, including the self-referral provision, relevance to middle school students, jurisdiction of the school department, how guilt or innocence of a student will be proven, effectiveness of the policy and communication between the police department and the school department.

“We’d like to see more open communication between the schools and the police department when it comes to violations and substance abuse policies,” said Mark Dorval, the police department’s community liaison officer.

Students at parties

The student proposal would prevent the school from punishing students “who attend a party but do not abuse substances.”

Students are unclear about what, if anything, can happen to people who don’t use alcohol, tobacco or drugs, but are at places where others are using, Cox said.

In December 2002, Principal Jeff Shedd began enforcing a previously unenforced provision of the contract, which imposed consequences on students who attended parties, even if those students did not drink.

Tinkham said this week that students who do not use forbidden substances are not subject to sanctions, even if others nearby are drinking, smoking or doing drugs.

He said Westbrook and South Portland are looking at that type of policy, but he doesn’t think Cape will head in that direction. That policy is “slightly more draconian,” he said.

Recently, a young South Portland man was assaulted with a baseball bat at a party on Boysenberry Drive in that city. The party, attended by South Portland High School students, has led community members to raise questions about the substance abuse policy in city schools. South Portland Superintendent Wendy Houlihan said the discussion on the substance abuse policy has been going on since last fall.

Houlihan said school officials investigated the Boysenberry Drive incident and spent three days interviewing about 17 students. But, Houlihan said, “if you don’t have proof or absolute evidence that Student A or Student B was drinking, then you can’t do anything.”

That is why South Portland is looking at changing their policy so the school would not be required to prove that a student-athlete had consumed alcohol or other substance, only that they had attended a party or been in the presence of others who had.

Tinkham said that policy would make the issue “much more black and white for us.” But, it would also “open up a whole can of worms that makes it nasty to deal with.” He mentioned students attending weddings, or other gatherings where alcohol is consumed by people of legal drinking age.

“Part of growing up is about making choices,” Tinkham said. That includes attending parties and placing themselves into those situations. Letting the students take responsibility for their actions is important, which is why the self-referral aspect of Cape’s policy is so important, Tinkham said.