C450-R – STUDENT DRUG TESTING ADMINISTRATIVE GUIDELINES

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C450-R – STUDENT DRUG TESTING ADMINISTRATIVE GUIDELINES

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These procedures implement Policy C450 on student drug testing. The Superintendent will appoint a Testing Coordinator to implement this policy and procedures.

1.         SCOPE OF TESTING: STUDENTS TO BE TESTED

            A. Voluntary Testing

  • Initiated by Franklin Township Community School Corporation

An administrator may offer the parent/guardian of a student involved in the following, an opportunity to have the student take a test pursuant to this policy:

  1. suspension or expulsion;
  2. more than fifteen (15) accumulated, unexcused absences or tardies during the school year;
  3. a sharp, unexplained drop in academic performance;
  4. possession of tobacco products or devices such as lighters, pursuant to the Student Code of Conduct regarding tobacco.

           An administrator is to make a written record of communication with the parents    concerning their decision on whether the student will be drug tested.

Test results will be reported to the Testing Coordinator. The Testing Coordinator will notify the parent/guardian of the results. If the test results are positive, the Testing Coordinator will work with the parent/guardian to find appropriate assistance for the student.  Within a reasonable period of time, the Coordinator will schedule a conference with the student and parent/guardian to determine the progress made with any program of assistance recommended.

This testing is in addition to, and distinct from, testing based on individualized, reasonable suspicion.

There shall be no consequences to the student as a result of the parent or guardian declining the opportunity to have the student take a voluntary drug test.

  • Initiated by the Request of Parent/Guardian

The parent/guardian of a student under eighteen years of age may request that the Corporation test the student’s urine for the use of illegal drugs, alcohol, and tobacco. The requested testing will be performed if the parent/guardian pre-pays the cost of the test and the student agrees to cooperate in the administration of the test.

            B. Reasonable Suspicion/Required Testing

The Testing Coordinator will work with an administrator at each school to ensure that a student is tested pursuant to this policy where there is individualized, reasonable suspicion to believe the student has used illegal drugs, alcohol, or tobacco in violation of the rules for student conduct and the administration of a urine test would assist in determining whether a violation of student conduct rules has occurred. Administrators will call or otherwise notify the parent/guardian of the test within a reasonable timeframe; generally, the parent/guardian will be informed before the test is performed, but determinations shall be made on a case-by-case basis.

As used in this paragraph, “individualized, reasonable suspicion” means circumstances which, when considered together in the context in which each occurred, give rise to a reasonable belief that at the time a test would be administered, the test would show the student had used a drug, alcohol, or tobacco in violation of Indiana or federal law or Corporation student conduct rules.

2.         SUBSTANCES TO BE TESTED FOR

            Urine samples submitted by a student will be tested for metabolic indicators of use of substances. These substances may include illegal drugs, legal drugs, alcohol, tobacco, and blocking agents (as defined below). These substances and/or their metabolites are considered illicit or banned for Corporation students: Alcohol, Amphetamines, Anabolic Steroids, Barbiturates, Benzodiazepines, Cocaine Metabolites, LSD, Marijuana Metabolites, Methadone, Methaqualone, Nicotine, Opiates, Performance Enhancing Drugs such as Steroids, Phencyclidine, Propoxyphene, and Other Specific Drugs.

3.         TESTING LABORATORY & METHODOLOGY

           Testing pursuant to this policy will be performed by a laboratory designated by the Superintendent. The laboratory selected must follow the standards set by the Department of Health and Human Services.  It must be certified under the auspices of the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Act (CLIA) and the Joint Commission of Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO).

           Initial tests of a split sample will be tested by immunoassay. A second test by gas chromatograph/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) will be performed whenever the initial test is positive. A testable portion of a sample testing positive will be maintained for thirty (30) days after the initial test report is delivered to the Testing Coordinator before it is destroyed. Samples testing negative will be destroyed after testing.

4.           STATISTICAL REPORT AND CONFIDENTIALITY

            The Testing Coordinator shall report the results of all tests in summary statistical form at least once a semester to the Superintendent. No data shall be included in these reports that would permit the test result of an individual student to be determined. 

The testing laboratory may not release any statistics on the rate of positive drug tests to any person, organization, news publication or media without expressed written consent of the Corporation.  However, the lab will provide the building principal with a quarterly report showing the number of tests performed, the rate of positive and negative tests, and what substances were found in the positive urine specimens.

Under this drug testing program, any staff coach or sponsor of the Corporation who may have knowledge of the results of a drug test will not divulge to anyone the results of the test or the disposition of the student involved, other than in the case of a legal subpoena being made upon that person in the course of a legal investigation. 

           5.           SAMPLE COLLECTION AND TESTING PROCEDURE

            The process of collecting a sample shall be conducted in accordance with industry standards and in accordance with applicable federal and state laws.  The collection procedures shall be designed to ensure the security and integrity of the sample and the procedures shall follow federal chain-of-custody guidelines.

All specimens registering below 90.5 degrees or above 99.8 degrees Fahrenheit will be invalid.  There is a heat strip on each of the specimen bottles indicating the validity of the urine specimen by temperature.  If this occurs, another specimen must be given by the student.

            If a student is unable to provide a sample, he or she will be permitted to consume up to 24 ounces of tap or bottled water provided by the Collector. The student will remain under direct supervision until he/she can provide a sufficient sample.

            A refusal to provide a specimen is a violation of this policy and will have the same consequences as a positive test. A decision of the Collector as to whether the student is unable or refusing to provide a specimen may be appealed in turn to the Testing Coordinator and that to the principal of the school. The decision of the principal shall be final.

If any student tampers or cheats with a drug test, or attempts to tamper or cheat with a drug test, including using a “blocking agent” to block or prevent the detection of metabolic indicators, the student(s) involved will be subject to discipline, which at a minimum will include being ineligible for extracurricular activities and driving to school for 365 days.

6.         CONSEQUENCES OF A CONFIRMED, POSITIVE, REQUIRED TEST

                  A positive, initial, and confirmatory test result from a required test showing the presence of metabolic indicators of the use of a substance shall be considered as relevant, credible evidence of the possession and use by the student of the substance. Any penalty or sanction imposed shall be consistent with the Student Code of Conduct for the possession of that substance.

                  The principal/designee will be notified of a student testing positive. The principal/designee will notify the student and his/her parent/guardian.  The student or his/her parent/guardian may submit any documented prescription, explanation, or information which will be considered in determining whether a positive test has been satisfactorily explained.

                  If the test is verified positive, the principal/designee will meet with the student and his/her parent/guardian at a Corporation facility.  The student and parent/guardian will be given the names of counseling and assistance agencies that the family may want to contact for help.

                  A student who tests positive will be subject to the disciplinary consequences outlined in the Student Handbook and, if applicable, Athletic Handbook.

                  The Corporation reserves the right to continue testing at any time during the remaining school year any participating student who tested positive and did not make satisfactory explanation.

                  Information on a verified positive test result will be shared on a need to know basis with the student’s coach or sponsor.  The results of negative tests will be kept confidential to protect the identity of all students being tested.

                  Drug testing results sheets will be returned to the principal/designee identifying students by number and not by name.  Names of students tested will not be kept in open files or on any computer.  Result sheets will be locked and secured in a location that only the principal/designee has access to.

6.         STUDENTS AGE EIGHTEEN AND OVER

                 Rights and notices to parent/guardian described in this policy will be provided only to the student after age eighteen (18) if the student does not live with and is not supported by a parent/guardian.

7.         RECORD KEEPING AND ACCESS TO RECORDS OF TESTING

  • Records Maintained

All records and results of tests under this policy shall be maintained by the Testing Coordinator in a file separate from the student’s permanent records folder. These records shall be maintained and scheduled for destruction in accordance with the applicable retention schedule established by the of the Indiana Archives and Records Administration.

  • Access to Records

No person shall have access to the records of testing pursuant to this policy for a reason other than the implementation of this policy without approval of the reason for access by the Superintendent. A parent/guardian and a student age (18) or older shall have access to the records of testing of that student pursuant to Board Policy E175 which implements the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act.

  • FINANCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

The Corporation will pay for all initial random drug tests and all initial reasonable suspicion drug tests.  A request on appeal for another test of a positive urine specimen is the financial responsibility of the student or his/her parent/guardian.  The school must approve the agency where the test is performed. The parent/guardian will be responsible for the cost of any drug test given as the result of a parent/guardian request that a student be tested or included in the testing pool.

A mandatory drug test for a student who initially refused to be randomly tested, or who tested positive, prior to resuming athletic/extracurricular/driving privileges is the financial responsibility of the student or his/her parent/guardian.

Counseling and subsequent treatment by non-school agencies is the financial responsibility of the student or his/her parent/guardian.

Franklin Township Community School Corporation

Adopted: 9/28/20