I like it. I wish public schools could do it.

Will all staff members be tested as well?

I like it. Another solid life lesson to teach the young men of CovCath. I would like to see NewCath do this as well. I didn't read in much detail but I assume it will be done at completely random times. Not that I know or anything g but there are many different ways to clean out you system of certain substances if you have fair warning before test.

 

If it's just a urine test they will just catch the dumb kids.

I wonder how hard they are on testing. When I was a college athlete, they would basically strip search us and watched us tinkle. For my job, they just sent us into a bathroom with a cup. Not too hard to fill with clean urine.

2016-17 CCH Drug and Alcohol Policy

 

Dear Parents:

Today, we are announcing an updated Drug and Alcohol Policy to take effect at Covington Catholic High School beginning with the 2016-17 school year. We believe this policy and substance abuse prevention program reflect our commitment to the development of our young men in alignment with CovCath’s mission – free from the destructive impacts of drugs.

We do not have evidence of widespread substance abuse among our student body. However, the alarming rise of drug use and addiction in the Northern Kentucky community at-large is well documented. This program, with technical and financial support from St. Elizabeth Healthcare, Medicount Management, and the Drug Free Clubs of America (DFC), is intended to provide our young men with an additional tool for deterrence, as well as tools to address usage with appropriate treatment if/when it occurs.

Key points of the updated policy include:

• 100% of our student population will be tested at least once annually, and will be subject to additional random testing.
  
• Parent and student agreement to the overall policy and student participation in the testing is mandatory for enrollment at Covington Catholic for the 2016-17 school year.
  
• Counseling and substance abuse treatment will be required following a positive test result.
  
• Possession or usage of controlled substances, including alcohol, by students on school property or when attending a school-sponsored activity, is not permitted. Guidelines for disciplinary action for infractions are articulated in the policy.
  

The policy and additional explanatory materials are available on the CovCath website at covcath.org/drugfreepolicy.

Please support our efforts and join in our prayers to help the students of Covington Catholic High School make positive and healthful choices as they move toward successful and impactful futures.

God's blessings,

 

Robert J. Rowe

Principal

2016-17 CCH Drug and Alcohol Policy

POLICY FAQs

 

Note: These questions and answers are intended to provide summarized tenets of the policy for the purposes of high-level communication. The full policy will govern the implementation and practice of this program.

 

Who will be tested?

 

100% of our student population will be tested annually, plus up to 50% random retesting of students, selected by DFCA. Participation in the random testing and agreement to the overall policy (with parent and student signatures) is required for enrollment at Covington Catholic for the 2016-17 school year.

 

When and how often might a student be tested?

 

A student may be tested if a member of the faculty, staff, or administration suspects them of being under the influence, and students may also be tested at random. There is no maximum number of times a student may be tested.

 

Who will conduct the testing?

 

We partner with Drug Free Clubs of America and their pool of resources collaborating to make this program a success. Among these is St. Elizabeth Healthcare Business Health, which regularly partners with groups of all types to design and coordinate drug testing as well as treatment programs. More information is available at www.stelizabeth.com/businesshealth/drugalcoholtesting.aspx.

 

What type of test will be used? What drugs will be tested for?

 

The test panel will be a multi-drug, rapid, qualitative immunoassay urine test for screening potential abuse of one of more of a list of up to ten drug types, including cocaine, methamphetamines, various opioids, and marijuana. The test will detect any combination of the designated drugs or drug metabolites at or above specified levels, as well as screening for the possibility of adulterants to “trick” the test such as normal pH, specific gravity, and markers found in normal human urine. A qualified laboratory and St. Elizabeth’s Medical Review Officer will confirm positive results with a more specific method and confirm the presence of markers found in normal human urine.

 

Why not hair testing?

 

We are using an expansive, high quality urine drug screen, designed by DFCA and St. Elizabeth Business Health, and made in the USA, to meet our objective of providing a program which helps our student population avoid drug abuse. It provides a technically and cost effective method of conducting broad scale testing. Given that 100% of our student population will be tested at least once, and all students are subject to being tested multiple times, any usage occasion could potentially be followed by a test.

 

While hair testing does generally offer a longer detection window than body fluid testing methods, it is also significantly more expensive, more limited in the categories of substances it can detect, is not approved by the Department of Transportation which sets recommended standards in the field of drug testing, and not currently supported for minors by either DFCA or St. Elizabeth Business Health. Urine testing is the much more common choice in industry.

 

Will there still be rewards for students who test drug-free?

 

Yes, absolutely. We believe strongly in the power of reinforcing a student’s choice to remain drug free. Rewards not only encourage teens to continue making good decisions, but also serve as a boost in self-esteem, send the message that their school and community care about their futures, and serve as an outward sign to others that this student is being drug tested reducing the likelihood of future offer for substance abuse. Each of these benefits of positive reinforcement serve as the foundation of a drug free lifestyle beyond high school graduation, which is a major focus of Covington Catholic’s vision.

 

To make our reward effort as dynamic as our testing policy we will be appointing a parent liaison to work closely with a select group of student officers to design rewards in school, recruit community rewards, and to market reward opportunities to our drug-free student body.

 

How are parents contacted following the testing of their son?

 

The school counselor, testing facility, and/or medical review officer will contact the parent(s) by mail if the results are negative (no drugs). If the test results are positive (drugs detected), the parent(s) will be informed via telephone. Following that phone conversation, the parent(s) and their son will be required to meet with the school counselor.

 

What happens if there is a first positive test?

 

The school counselor, testing facility, and/or medical review officer will inform the parent(s) via telephone and arrange a required meeting including the student, parent(s) and school counselor. At that meeting, the school counselor will discuss the results of the test and the community resources available to provide treatment and assistance. The student is required to attend whatever substance abuse treatment or counseling is recommended, at his parents’ or his own expense.

 

A first positive test for a controlled substance is considered a first violation of this Policy. At this point, if the student avails himself of the community resources available as discussed in the meeting with the school counselor, generally, he will be permitted to continue to participate in extra-curricular activities and nothing will appear on his permanent school record. Exceptions may be made at the discretion of the administration.

 

Once a student tests positive, he may thereafter be tested regularly, at the expense of the student or his parent(s). All recommendations after a first positive test result will be written by the counselor, signed by the parent and student, and must be fulfilled.

 

What constitutes a second violation of the Policy?

 

A second positive test for the same substance may be considered an additional violation under this Policy. A subsequent positive test for a different substance shall always be considered an additional violation of this Policy. Failure to comply with recommended treatment or counseling, or to complete the recommended course of treatment or counseling, will also be considered an additional violation of this Policy.

 

What happens after a second violation of the Policy?

 

Upon a second violation of this Policy, the counselor will make additional recommendations as an elevated response to the second positive. All recommendations will be written by the counselor, signed by the parent and student, and must be fulfilled. A student will be ineligible for extracurricular activities until he can prove through testing to be drug free out of concern for his safety and the safety of others, and is required to continue treatment or counseling. This period of extracurricular ineligibility may be lengthened or shortened at the discretion of the school counselor, principal, or principal’s designee.

 

What happens after a third violation of the Policy?

 

Upon a third violation of this Policy, expulsion from the school is probable as the ongoing pattern of abuse is evidence of the need for significant change.

 

Does this Policy ensure that every student is tested on some frequency?

 

We are planning a sufficient volume of tests such that 100% of students will be tested at least once, and, with a high rate of re-testing, many will be tested multiple times. There is no maximum number of times a student may be tested.

 

While all students are subject to drug and alcohol testing under this Policy, it does NOT constitute any legal obligation or otherwise require testing of each individual student, or all of the students.

 

Does this mean your existing policy is being replaced?

 

No. The voluntary testing program Covington Catholic offered in the past (in partnership with the Drug Free Clubs of America) had participation from about 2/3 of our student population. We have been, and continue to be proud of the young men who volunteered for DFCA in the past. This is simply a new implementation strategy of our current drug testing program. It ensures that 100% of students are offered the opportunity to reject drug use through the possibility of a test, and provides monitoring so that every student has the necessary intervention and help resources required to remain drug free.

 

We will continue the same policies for students who are found under the influence or who bring to school or school events alcohol, prescription drugs or other illegal chemicals. We will continue disciplining (up to expelling) any student judged to have sold or promoted the sale of drugs, alcohol or other unsafe substances/paraphernalia.

 

What happens when a student voluntarily admits to using drugs or drinking?

 

Students involved with alcohol or drug use are encouraged to seek help by speaking confidentially with a school counselor. In the case of student self-reporting, the counselor will inform parent(s) and/or administrators when there is foreseeable and potential harm to the student and/or others.

 

There are no immediate school-applied consequences for a student who self-reports.

 

Are other local Catholic high schools using a program like this?

 

Covington Catholic is at the forefront of this pilot effort with DFCA and St. Elizabeth. We are the only Northern Kentucky high school in this collaboration. For over a year, we have been working hard to define this new implementation of DFCA’s traditional model, ensuring that all students have testing as an “out”, that they continue to be rewarded for the good decisions they are making in remaining drug free, and that students in need are guided toward resources for help.

 

We are grateful for the expertise and financial support of our partners, St. Elizabeth Healthcare, Medicount Management, and Drug Free Clubs of America, which enable this important program on behalf of students and families (and at no financial cost to them for the in-school testing) at Covington Catholic High School.

There are plenty of former students that have been devastated by the heroine epidemic.

 

This is a good idea.

How much does it cost the school to do a single drug test?

 

100% of the cost is covered by St. Elizabeth and Drug Free Clubs of America.

This program is not designed to be punitive. It's designed to keep high school kids safe, and have early detection if someone starts going down the wrong path.

 

From the school's website: "This programs gives our students five powerful words: 'I can't, my school tests.' "

As a current Cov Cath parent - I like it. I have had three sons already graduate from Cov Cath, and I wish they had something like this when they were there. I know several boys, including my own, who got in some trouble while students there. I strongly believe that had this program existed, things would have been easier to and more effective in getting the boys back on the right direction.

 

One thing I have heard for a while is that they were looking at the program over at La Salle as a model. Does anyone know the impact that La Salle has seen since implementing? I believe they have had there program for a few years now.

Good for Cov. Cath. Especially with no cost to the school it's a no brainer in my book.

After thinking about this for a day, I have decided. I really don't like this. The school is stepping in for the parents here. If the school wants to offer free drug testing and parents give approval....that is completely different. This is overreach.

After thinking about this for a day, I have decided. I really don't like this. The school is stepping in for the parents here. If the school wants to offer free drug testing and parents give approval....that is completely different. This is overreach.

 

If it were a public school, I'd agree.

 

It's a private school. One no one is forced to attend. If you don't want to do what is required, there are plenty of other private schools in the area that will take your money.

After thinking about this for a day, I have decided. I really don't like this. The school is stepping in for the parents here. If the school wants to offer free drug testing and parents give approval....that is completely different. This is overreach.

 

Do you think schools should be able to search lockers without student permission?

If it were a public school, I'd agree.

 

It's a private school. One no one is forced to attend. If you don't want to do what is required, there are plenty of other private schools in the area that will take your money.

 

His argument, a fair one to consider, is NOT what's allowed. His argument centers around it being right.