'You Choose' project seems a logical choice

For years, the Valley’s young people have heard the same message over and over: Don’t do drugs. Just say no.

Police officers preach at them and school staff gives them tips on how to resist peer pressure. Seems simple enough.

Still, local teens and pre-teens continue to drink and use drugs at rates that repeatedly surpass the national average. Mat-Su youth, in particular, seem to be torn between the more restrictive “Bible belt” mentality and the overly permissive, dysfunctional settings found in many homes, from Chickaloon to Talkeetna and everywhere in between.

Somewhere in the middle lies common sense.

There, you will find Dave Valasquez, Megan Kramer, David Foster, Laura Ogan and Chris Cardenas with their breakthrough new anti-drug project “You Choose.” And they desperately want to share it with Mat-Su teenagers because they believe it can actually make a difference.

It could even save their lives, they believe.

Incorporating catchy rock and grunge music popular among teens with gritty, no-holds-barred testimonies from drug users and Valasquez’s heartbreaking story about his own uncle, the program could be just the ticket to a brighter future for many.

“We’re delivering the same healthy message, but with a new delivery vehicle,” Valasquez told the Mat-Su Borough School Board during its June 15 meeting at Palmer High School. “We brought this to the district two years ago. We were told there isn’t any money and that it should be tested first. We tested it at Houston High School and got a great reception and now we have private backers, so it won’t cost the district a dime.”

The You Choose group asked the board to allow the program to be presented during assemblies at all the Valley’s high schools during Red Ribbon Week this upcoming school year. After all, the annual district event dedicated to inspiring youth to stay clean and sober usually involves a school assembly.

But to the group’s utter shock, the board refused to allow the program during school hours. They said it would eat up staff time, upset parents and potentially cause troubled students to experience psychological issues.

But the board told the group it could hold assemblies after school, as the administrative staff recommended.

“I’ve heard good things about the program, but I’m not crazy about it being during the school day,” board member Sarah Welton said. “I have a real hard time with that because I believe our instructional minutes are stretched as they are, especially with going to the seven-period day.”

Board member Neal Lacy, who has never been shy when it comes to sharing his opinions, disagrees.

“For 15 years I taught in this district and I don’t know how many worthless assemblies I went to,” Lacy said. “This is a good assembly and it should be during the school day. The ones being targeted in this program are the very ones who would not be there if it was after school. They’re the ones doing the risky behaviors after school.”

We wholeheartedly agree with Mr. Lacy.

“I wish someone had brought this sort of thing to my uncle when he was in school. Then he might still be alive,” said Valasquez, whose cocaine-addicted uncle Jeff injured two people at a party in Anchorage before fatally shooting his wife in the head and then turning the gun on himself. “I just really hope we didn’t kill people tonight because we’re not letting these kids hear this.”

So do we.