The PTSA would like to thank Poway Sheriff’s Officers Warren Voth and Mike Farrell and Juvenile Detective Chris Johnson for their informative presentation of drug use in our community and across our nation.  We also heard from Nancy Knott, CADCII/Interventionist from the Scripps McDonald Center about how to keep our kids away from drugs, what to look for as parents, and what resources are available to help.   Ms. Knott recommended that we look for more information from the  Partnership for a Drug Free America.   She also recommends the following books:  

Pain Killer: A “Wonder” Drug’s Trail of Addiction and Death by Barry Meier; and

The Price of Privilege: How Parental Pressure and Material Advantage Are Creating a Generation of Disconnected and Unhappy Kids by Madeline Levin, Ph.D.

Ms. Knott handed out the following Parent’s Bill of Rights, which is reprinted here with permission.

Parent’s Bill of Rights 

• We, as parents, have a right to be treated with respect.
•  We have the right to say no and not feel guilty. 
• We have the right to know where our kids are, who their friends are, and who they are with at any time.
• We have the right to demonstrate we care by occasionally verifying or spot checking our children’s whereabouts.  We may, for example, call host parents on parties or overnight stays. 
• We have the right to set a curfew and enforce it with restrictions and loss of privileges. 
• We have the right not to condone any alcohol or drug usage and to say no to attendance at activities where alcohol or drug usage may occur. 
• We have the right to make mistakes and/or change our minds. 
• We have the right to ask questions and expect answers about all things which may affect our children. 
• We have the right to monitor all school related activities; academic, behavioral, and social. 
• We have the right to know and consult with adults who influence our children’s lives, i.e., coaches, employers, teachers, youth group leaders, ministers, and counselors. 
• We have the right to know what is happening within our own home, to set “house rules,” and know the identity of guests who come into our home. 
• We have the right to assign our children chores and other family responsibilities appropriate to their ages. 
• We have a right to promote time together as a family, which may include meals, outings, study time, and other planned activities. 
• We have a right to be authoritative when logical explanation and reason have not succeeded. 
• We have a right to have family rules and consistently enforce them with appropriate consequences. 

(Tri-City Substance Abuse Coalition – Fremont, Newark, Union City, California)