Parents learn about substance abuse

Acorn Staff Writer


LISA ADAMS/ The Acorn'JUST SAY NO' - Nationally known authority on teen substance abuse issues, Cary Quashen, center, explains to parent Barbara Nelson about a display of popular street drugs during a presentation at Oak Park High School. Oak Park Unified School District counselor Randy McLelland looks on.

LISA ADAMS/ The Acorn’JUST SAY NO’ – Nationally known authority on teen substance abuse issues, Cary Quashen, center, explains to parent Barbara Nelson about a display of popular street drugs during a presentation at Oak Park High School. Oak Park Unified School District counselor Randy McLelland looks on.

Parents trying to stop their kids from using drugs and alcohol is nothing new, but rarely has one community become so galvanized against substance abuse as Oak Park.


Nearly 100 parents recently turned out for a drug and alcohol education night at Oak Park High School hosted by Cary Quashen, a nationally-known substance abuse counselor, and Millie Andress, head of the school district’s Safe Kids Task Force.


The session came on the heels of an alcohol-related incident at the high school that had raised the ire of Oak Park parents.


"Alcohol kills more young people between the ages of 15 and 24 than all other drugs combined," Andress said.


Alcohol is still the No. 1 drug of choice among teens, said Andress, who urged parents to petition local grocery store managers to keep booze out of reach from pilfering teenagers.


Asked Andress, "What are they doing? Anything they want. Where do they get it?


‘‘Everywhere."


A recent survey in Oak Park Unified School District indicated that 72 percent of its high school juniors have tried alcohol or drugs at least once in their lives. At least a third of all students surveyed said they had either driven or ridden in a vehicle after drinking.


Quashen, a counselor for 19 years, gave parents guidelines to follow when teens want to host a party or attend a party. He also ran through a series of warning signs that tell parents when their child might be using drugs or alcohol.


"It’s really easy to tell if your child is using. They go up and they go down. They’re moody and they don’t want to sit down at dinner with you … The first that goes when they start using drugs is their motivation."


Warning signs include a drop in grades, shady friends, defiance to rules, secretive behavior, staying out late, change in personal hygiene and stealing money, alcohol or prescription drugs from family members.


Quashen said children make the decision as early as 9 years old to use drugs and alcohol.


School and law enforcement programs such as DARE (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) are helpful, but parent communication works the best when it comes to keeping kids on the right track.


"If they don’t learn about this from us, they’re going to learn about it from somebody else," Quashen said. "I talk to my 2-year-old. I talk to [my kids] over and over until I’m blue in the face."


But parents and educators compete for the hearts and minds of only 60 percent of the youth.


According to statistics, 20 percent of the kids will never use drugs and alcohol and another 20 percent will be users–no matter what.


Society, of course, is much to blame.


People who get caught with small amounts of marijuana are fined less than a traffic ticket, Quashen said. And then there are those parents who tell their kids it’s okay to drink as long as they remain at home.


"If you give them permission to do it in your house, you give them permission to do it period," Quashen said.


Action Family Counseling Centers of Studio City, the organization that Quashen leads, prepared a Parent Bill of Rights, which the parents read aloud and discussed.


Some parents signed and returned a parent agreement in which they promised to set a good example for their teenagers, not permit unsupervised parties and to communicate with other parents about teen activities.


"The parents asked terrific questions and the dialogue was great," said Marilyn Lippiatt, Oak Park superintendent of schools.




Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *