FILE: IDFAA
ATHLETIC AND EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITY DRUG SCREENING
Student participation in any Louisiana High School Athletic Association (LHSAA) sanctioned extracurricular activity is not an absolute right but a privilege afforded to eligible students on an equal opportunity basis and thus is voluntary and not required by School Board policy or state and/or federal law.
The DeSoto Parish School Board, in an effort to further protect the health and safety of student athletes, and in an effort to preserve and maintain a positive learning environment, has adopted a policy for Athletic and Extracurricular Activity Drug Screening. The express purpose of this policy is (1) to help prevent student athletes from using drugs, (2) to help protect their health and safety, (3) to provide drug users with an educational assistance program, and (4) to try to preserve and maintain a positive learning environment for the children who have been committed to the temporary custody of the state as schoolmaster.
As a part of the drug screening policy, the DeSoto Parish School Board authorizes random urinalysis drug testing of students who participate in any of the schools' athletic and/or extracurricular programs.
PROCEDURES
Prior to participating in any Louisiana High School Athletic Association (LHSAA) sanctioned sport or extracurricular school activity, the student athlete and parent/guardian shall be required to sign the LHSAA Substance Abuse/Misuse Contract and the DeSoto Parish School Board Student Drug Testing Authorization/Consent form. These arrangements state that all extracurricular participants/athletes shall be subject to random drug testing. These tests shall be strictly enforced and participation shall be mandatory, since the parents/guardians have freely chosen to allow their son(s)/daughter(s) to participate in any LHSAA sanctioned /extracurricular programs. No student shall be tested unless the parent(s)/guardian(s) and the student sign both the LHSAA and DeSoto Parish School Board forms giving permission to have the tests performed. Refusal to allow these tests to be administered shall immediately serve notice that the student may not participate in any athletic or extracurricular activity for that school year.
All extracurricular participants/athletes shall be subject to random selection and testing throughout the school year. All urinalysis testing shall be performed by a professional NIDA approved laboratory to be selected by the Superintendent and approved by the School Board. The tests shall ascertain if there is present any controlled substance as may be specified by the School Board or Superintendent. All costs associated with the administration of the extracurricular activity/athletic drug testing program shall be the responsibility of the DeSoto Parish School Board. However, any evaluation or counseling services which may be mandated as a result of positive tests shall not, under any circumstances, be the responsibility of the DeSoto Parish School Board.
Medication
Extracurricular participants/student athletes who are or have been taking prescription medication must submit verification (either by a copy of the prescription or by doctor’s authorization) prior to being tested for review by the medical review officer. Students who refuse to provide verification and test positive shall be subject to the actions listed below for positive test results.
Student Selection
The names of students participating in any extracurricular activity shall be included on a drug screening eligibility list prepared by the Superintendent and/or his/her designee. Each student on the list shall be assigned a student number from which a random selection of student numbers shall be identified for screening. The School Board-selected drug screening laboratory shall select 5%-10% of the students participating in each sport from each school for drug testing. Testing shall occur prior to the start of the playing seasons or during the season. Additional testing may be required at any time the principal and coach deem testing necessary based on reasonable suspicion and/or direct evidence of any drug usage. The Superintendent and/or his/her designee shall notify the students selected for screening of their selection and procedures to follow for drug testing. Testing shall occur on the same day as the students are randomly selected. The Superintendent and his/her designee, as well as all employees and agents of the School Board shall take all reasonable steps to assure the integrity, confidentiality, and random nature of the selection process.
RESULTS OF TESTS
The following procedures shall be followed upon receipt of a positive result from the drug testing described herein:
Both the individual who has tested positive and his/her parents/guardians shall be immediately notified.
First Positive:
After confirmation of a positive drug screening, a student shall lose eligibility for the next (2) calendar weeks. The student shall not be allowed to practice during this time until a conference and an appropriate plan of action is agreed upon and signed by all parties. This plan may include periodic drug screening and drug education counseling. At the end of the 2-week suspension, the student may return to any school extracurricular activity. The student will be re-tested 30 days after receiving the first test results by a certified laboratory that is approved by DeSoto Parish School Board.
Students unable or refusing to produce a sample shall be treated as a confirmed positive.
A student who provides an adulterated sample as ascertained by the certified laboratory approved by the DeSoto Parish School Board shall be treated as a confirmed positive.
A second positive test result shall result in the student being excluded from participation in all extracurricular activities for a period of six (6) weeks.
A third positive test result shall result in the student being excluded from participation in all extracurricular activities for a period of twelve (12) months.
Penalties shall be cumulative beginning with and throughout the student’s participation in an athletic event through his/her high school career. Any subsequent positive tests shall prohibit further participation in any activities for his/her remaining high school career.
All test results shall be received by the Superintendent or his/her designee. The parent(s) and/or guardian(s) of a student testing positive shall be immediately notified by the responsible person and/or medical review officer. Such notification shall be confirmed in writing. Further, the Superintendent or his/her designee shall immediately notify the principal of the student's school who will then advise the student as soon as possible and the sponsor(s)/coach(es) of the extracurricular activity(ies) in which the student participates.
A student or his/her parent(s) or guardian(s) may request a verification test from the specified testing agency, the cost of which shall be borne by the student and parent(s) or guardian(s), and shall be a test of the same specimen. Should the student request a verification test from another laboratory or testing agency, the cost of the verification test shall be the responsibility of the student and his/her parent(s) or guardians(s), and shall be administered by a laboratory or testing agency approved by the DeSoto Parish School Board. Further, the verification test must be of the same specimen previously tested. Moreover, the verification test shall be administered in accordance with the terms, conditions, and provisions of this drug testing policy. Verification of test results will act as the only appeal to the conditions set forth in this policy.
OTHER GUIDELINES
The Superintendent or his/her designee shall implement guidelines that ensure the fair enforcement of this policy and maintain strict confidentiality. The drug testing guidelines established herein are to be employed in conjunction with and in addition to other School Board policies which prescribe penalties for the possession of, use of, consumption of, being under the influence of, and/or distribution of illegal or prohibited substances on school grounds or at any school related functions.
PARENTAL RELEASE
The parent(s) or guardian(s) and the student shall release the DeSoto Parish School Board, its members (both individually and in their official capacity), as well as any employee, teacher, principal or other school administrator or personnel from any liability in connection with this policy, the administration of the testing procedures and/or test results, any warranties addressing the accuracy of said tests and any and all medical or laboratory procedures employed by the referring laboratory. It is expressly understood the DeSoto Parish School Board assumes no responsibility for the diagnosis or treatment of any disease or condition that may become known as a result of any laboratory test(s) conducted in the implementation of this drug testing program.
Approved: May, 2004
Revised: August, 2004
Revised: August 6, 2020
Ref: La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §§17:81, 40:961, 49:1111
Vernonia School District 47J vs. Action, 115 S. Ct. 2386 (1995)
Louisiana High School Athletic Association, Rule 1.17.2
Board minutes, 8-5-99, 8-3-00, 8-5-04, 8-6-20
DeSoto Parish School Board