Drug Abuse Education

Do You Know About Project D.A.R.E.?

Project D.A.R.E. (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) is a joint project of the North Carolina Department of Public Education, Jacksonville Police Department, Onslow County School System, and Camp Lejeune Military Dependent School System, to prevent drug abuse and violence among children and youth. Traditional drug abuse programs dwell on the harmful effects of drugs. The project D.A.R.E. is to help students recognize and resist the many subtle pressures that influence them to experiment with alcohol, inhalants, marijuana, other dangerous drugs. The objectives of Project D.A.R.E. are very clear, distinct and decisive. They are:

• To provide students with skills for recognizing and resisting social pressure to experiment with drugs.
• To help students recognize ways to deal with anger and violence.
• To help enhance self-esteem.
• To teach positive alternatives to substance use.
• To help students develop skills in risk assessment and decision making.
• To build interpersonal and communication skills.

The D.A.R.E. officer achieves these objectives by attending training or carefully selected veteran law enforcement officer. This training prepares the officer to present a structured, sequential curriculum in the schools.

An important by-product of the D.A.R.E. Program is the impact made by uniform law enforcement officers working in the classrooms. These officers provide a positive role model for children in a nonthreatening environment.

The Jacksonville Police Department maintains one of the largest D.A.R.E. programs in the state. Currently, D.A.R.E. is taught in Ten (10) elementary schools. One of the unique features of our D.A.R.E. Program is the fact that D.A.R.E. is taught by this agency to Camp Lejeune Military Dependent School System. It is accurate to say that in school year 1995/1996, 1607 fifth grade students received the D.A.R.E. curriculum. A total of 1700 blocks of instruction were taught by the Jacksonville police officers.

Project D.A.R.E. has been and remains a vital crime prevention program in the Jacksonville Police Department. It is a known fact that the youth of any community is that community's future. Teaching children about drugs and violence through D.A.R.E. ads value to an age-old adage, "PROTECTING THE FUTURE". The Jacksonville Police Department is committed to that old adage and has accepted the challenge of Project D.A.R.E.

Drug Education for Teachers

This program is designed to educate staff members of each school what to look for in regards to drugs and drug paraphernalia. Staff members are provided a lecture and shown various drug paraphernalia.

• Drug Education for the Youth Services Board
• Drug Education for members of the Drug Free School Board
• Educational Drug Displays

It is strongly believed by this agency that public awareness is education and that education is the vehicle to which drug abuse and use will be arrested. Educational Drug Displays are made available for display at various sites attended by the public to wit: shopping centers, P.T.O. meetings and members of the drug free school-board and to any other requesting party.

Jacksonville Police Department, Community Services Unit 910.455.1472