Salpointe Catholic High School - Horizons Yearbook (Tucson, AZ)

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-. . new approach to drug awarenes I don't view it so much as a change as I do a growth, explained Fr. Leo McCarthy. O. Carm.. referring to the new policy installed in 1986 at Salpointe to deal with chemical abuse among stu- dents. The program was founded by Fr. Roy Conry, O. Carm., one of the school counselors, after he attended a week- long workshop on drug and alcohol abuse and treatment called Break- through presented by Westcenter. Upon his return from the workshop, a faculty-parent committee was estab- lished to develop Salpointe's new pro- gram. The new policy stated that any stu- dent possessing or using illegal drugs or alcohol would be suspended for five to ten days. The student would then re- ceive counselingfor his or her problem, either from a school counselor or from a non-school agency that dealt with chemical addiction. After the third of- fense, the student would be expelled with no right of appeal. According to the old policy, a student would have been . fflijfil5:i:i?i3ff?:1fit7Ll:fffozifffifff'5fj,fl.75ljQ:.E:llfl: -.itgsgrfffi fxgiifss ws! my . S-M Drafting Brad McElligott, '90, Fr. Leo Booth makes his point at Salpointe's Drug Assem- bly, Bill Campbell, '87, discusses the assem- bly with Fr. Roy Conry, O. Carm.,' Clint Phil- lips, '89, Karen Gruber, '88, and Megan Ste- fanek, '90, express mixed reactions to the drug handbook. 8 FEATURES expelled with no right of appeal after the first possession or usage offense. We want to help the students who have a problem, rather than weed them out, said Fr. Roy. Student reactions to the policy change were varied. Among the opin- ions offered: Q The new policy is good because it shows that Salpointe cares about its stu- dents and is willing to give them a sec- ond chance. - Kara Lynn Struble, '88. lil They're just opening the doors for people to bring drugs into the school. - Amanda Jones, '88. E It's fair, because it's letting the stu- dents be responsible for their own deci- sions. - Danielle Bianchi. '89. On October ist, Salpointe's student body participated in Drug Awareness Week by attending a presentation given by Fr. Leo Booth, a world-renowned speaker and recovering alcoholic, who spoke about drug and alcohol addic- tions and their common symptoms. Many students found the assembly helpful. I feel that the assembly brought insight to our understanding of alcoholism, expressed Jim Naughton. '89, The same night, a meeting was held for parents concerned about the drug situation at Salpointe. Dr. Paul Crowley, Director at Westcenter, discussed the signs of drug and alcohol use and how to prevent or deal with the problem at home. Society's drug and alcohol problem really hit home on October lst, the same day as Salpointe's drug assem- blies, when four Salpointe swimmers were hit by a drunk driver while driving home from a swim meet. Thankfully, all of the students recovered from their in- juries, but the misfortune emphasized the seriousness of the problem to Sal- pointe students. I think that people were more aware of drunk driving be- cause it became a reality and not just statistics, explained Jenny Farley. '88.' -m.,-. .. . M ,Q .wg f 5- W : .f .-.- ,., ......- .f.f.2. I...

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rr-IE com WAR n epidemic of rumor Have you heard? There's an epidemic at Salpointe. But this is no ordinary dis- ease - it's dangerous, highly conta- gious, and has scientists baffled. Ac- cording to experts, the virus starts with the ear, oozes into the brain, and eventu- ally takes control of the mouth, until the victim is left entirely helpless. Yes folks, sad but true, Salpointe has a bad case of Rumors Simplex 10. Upon hearing of the disaster, the im- mediate reaction at yearbook headquar- ters was to investigate just how these rumors got started. Students seemed to have varying opinions on the subject: some insisted that the sophomores were to blame, while other, less biased sources, such as Bob Fanning, '87, were certain that rumors came from mommy and daddy rumors. Perhaps the most sensible answer came from an individual who theorized that rumors stemmed from the truth, with the rest left up to God and divine revelation. The next step was to determine how rumors managed to reproduce so quick- ly. Our first impluse, of course, was to check the cafeteria food, but that proved to be a dead end. But our will was strong, and our intentions good, and soon we were able to discover the rumor's true breeding grounds .. . the IMAGINATION! ln fact, its productivity surpassed even our worst fears, as imagination was shown to be the culprit in case after case, including everything from stories told to freshmen about Sal- pointe's elevator to publications like People magazine. Much to our horror, we found that many people became carriers of the dis- ease by choice, enjoying the sense of power that accompanies Stage One. ln Stage Two, the illness worsens, and the afflicted begin to use any methods avail- able to spread their gossip, such as word of mouth, notes, and especially the telephone. It is in the third and final stage that the malady becomes most dangerous, as its victims begin to hear the whispers behind their backs. Since the effects of rumors can be devastating, shouldn't an effort have been made to prevent all forms of the disease? The answer, surprisingly, is no. Most rumors never went beyond the stage of amusement, and cases such as these were easily treated. After all, as Melanie Martinick, '87, said, lt would be boring if you didn't have anything to talk about. Only cases of a malicious nature necessitated extreme care. ln or- der to identify such cases, look for the following: Cl shifty eyes, Cl over-eager listening, lil non-stop talking, lil sweaty palms, and lil National Enquirer lifetime subscrip- tions. ln such cases, the simplest method of treatment was also the most effective, the best way to avoid vicious rumors was to not start or spread them! . , aim' ' We L55-2 ,QW f -ia Ii Wi., 3 . , 10 FEATURES --W s'