Dare to Deconstruct

How America’s D.A.R.E program failed to eff ectively prevent drug use in adolescents eff ectively prevent drug use in adolescents

Written by Emma Goshin, PR and Outreach Director PR and Outreach Director Illustrated by Delilah Quasius, Staff Illustrator and Designer Staff Illustrator and Designer

Picture this: you walk into fi fth-grade gym class only to fi nd that instead of playing dodgeball, you’re faced by a police offi cer in uniform asking you to sit down and listen to a presentation about drugs. Your playtime is eaten up by a lecture on how to say no to drugs and the risks of using them. Once a month for the rest of the school year, this offi cer comes in to reiterate this message. Ten years later, you look back and ask yourself, “how has that presentation aff ected my life?”

Drug Abuse Resistance Education (D.A.R.E) is a drug-use prevention program for young students across America. The organization envisions “a world in which students everywhere are empowered to respect others and choose to lead lives free from violence, substance abuse and other dangerous behaviors.”1 Founded as an off shoot of Nancy Reagan’s “Just Say No” campaign, the Los Angeles Police Department and the Los Angeles Unifi ed School District created D.A.R.E for elementary-aged students in 1983.2 As the program grew, politicians realized that by supporting it, they could portray themselves as pro-police and pro-kids. In the early 1990s, the government used $600 million to $750 million per year in taxpayer dollars on the program.

However, D.A.R.E. still failed American youth with its fl awed curriculum. For one, police offi cers delivered the series of 45-minute lectures instead of addiction prevention specialists.3 The

1 “D.A.R.E.,” D.A.R.E.org, 2022. 2 The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica, “War on Drugs,” Encyclopedia Britannica, Sept. 20, 2022. 3 “Why the DARE Program Failed,” Landmark lessons covered the risks of drugs and tips on how to refuse them, but they also tried to create a more positive image of the police, indicating the bias in age of the police, indicating the bias in its presenters. D.A.R.E.’s “Parents’ Guide Book” listed some of the following as symptoms of drug use: wearing sunglasses at inappropriate times, sudden appetite, especially for sweets, loss of motivation or enthusiasm and lack of energy.4 While these may be signs of drug use for some people, they can be signs of other mental health issues such as depression and anxiety. At its peak, D.A.R.E. was in 75% of American school districts.5 Ultimately, time has shown the ineff ectiveness of the program. A 1994 Offi ce of Justice study concluded that while the program expanded drug-use education in schools nationwide, its core curriculum was “less successful than interactive programs in achieving its mission to prevent drug use among 5th and 6th grade students.”6 The D.A.R.E organi-

some of the following as symptoms of

Recovery, May 18, 2020. 4 “D.A.R.E. America Parents’ Guide Book,” Bristol Virginia Sheriff ’s Offi ce. 5 Christopher Ingraham, “A brief history of DARE, the anti-drug program Jeff Sessions wants to revive,” The Washington Post, July 12, 2017. 6 Christopher L. Ringwalt et al., “Past and Future Directions of the D.A.R.E. (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) Program: An Evaluation Review,” Past and Future Directions of the D.A.R.E. Program | Offi ce of Justice Programs, Sept. 1994. zation took legal action to suppress the report, proving their failure to adapt their curriculum.7 A 1999 study with the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology examined the impact of D.A.R.E. 10 years after administration. It found little diff erences in drug use, drug attitudes and self-esteem between groups who either received D.A.R.E. education or another drug-education program.8 In 2002, D.A.R.E. had a $10 million annual budget which shrunk to $3.5 million in 2012.9 Its latest annual report in 2020 said that it made less revenue from grants, contracts, fundraising and other areas in 2019 than it did in 2018.

A combination of these studies as well as a general feeling that D.A.R.E. was outdated may have led to its downfall. D.A.R.E.’s founding, support and curriculum are too fallible for us to rely on. Experts on drug use, abuse and addiction exist! Instead of funding programs like D.A.R.E. that have been consistently proven ineff ective and were founded on principles of over-policing, we need to invest in professionals who can address drug use in an impactful way. ■

7 Matt Berry, “Does the New DARE Program Work?” American Addiction Centers, Oct. 24, 2022. 8 D. R. Lynam et al., “Project DARE: No eff ects at 10-year follow-up,” Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 1999. 9 Christopher Ingraham, “A brief history of DARE, the anti-drug program Jeff Sessions wants to revive,” The Washington Post, July 12, 2017.