The San Benito High School Board of Trustees will hear a report
about the effectiveness of drug-sniffing dogs on campus tonight,
but some of the high school’s 3,000 students have already decided
the dogs are not needed.
Hollister – The San Benito High School Board of Trustees will hear a report about the effectiveness of drug-sniffing dogs on campus tonight, but some of the high school’s 3,000 students have already decided the dogs are not needed.
Board President Shelley Donati said Tuesday the trustees want to discuss the issue with staff, administrators and the community, but may not take any action, either to expand or cancel the program.
“We’re always looking at campus safety,” she said. “This is just an informational discussion to make sure we are doing everything we can to provide a safe environment for our students.”
For the past four years the district has used the dogs once a year as a deterrent for possession of drugs, alcohol, firearms and explosives. Canine searches were conducted on students’ lockers, cars and luggage prior to their annual senior trip in the spring.
The high school district contracts with a private, Modesto-based company,
Kontraband Interdiction and Detection Services (K.I.D.S.), for the service. Representatives from the company will be present to answer questions.
K.I.D.S. provides contraband detection services to more than 100 school districts nationwide and has seen dramatic results, President Steven Essler said Tuesday. In some schools, student suspensions and expulsions have dropped 94 percent, he said.
“It’s not meant to catch students, it’s used as a visible deterrent,” Essler said. “Students are less likely to come to school with drugs or alcohol if they know we might be coming.”
Although K.I.D.S. services vary depending on the needs of the district, Essler recommends about 24 half-day visits for every 1,000 students a district has enrolled. Each visit costs about $170 per half-day.
During the random, unannounced visits, trained dogs sniff lockers, cars, classrooms and backpacks, but do not sniff individual students. Leaving their belongings behind, students retire from the classroom for five to eight minutes while the dogs search the rooms. The company’s employees do not have the power to arrest students, but can alert district officials to the odor of prohibited items.
K.I.D.S. has $10 million general liability policy with a highly-rated insurance company, but the company’s dogs have never injured a student, he said.
Regardless of the company’s effectiveness, some San Benito High School students don’t want the canines on their campus at all.
“I don’t think it is necessary, there’s a lot of (drug use) going on, but it isn’t happening at school,” Sophomore Klay Swanson said.
Senior Stevie Garza agreed.
“It’s a waste of money because it’s not necessary,” she said.
Last year, 33 students were suspended for possession or use of marijuana and six were suspended for possession of a weapon or an explosive, according to statistics released by the school district in September.
Brett Rowland covers education for the Free Lance. He can be reached at 831-637-5566 ext. 330 or [email protected]
