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 An Interview with Wallkill Central School District Assistant Superintendent of Education Jose Sanchez |
 Jack Bennett, the Director of the Ulster Prevention Project, interviewed Wallkill School District Assistant Superintendent Jose Sanchez to gain insight on the issue of substance abuse prevention from an educator’s point of view. Wallkill is a rural area snuggled between Newburgh, NY (a hard-scrabble urban enclave) and New Paltz, (a liberal college town infused with Woodstock’s “hippie” influence). Like other rural areas across the country, it is fast catching up to the perspectives found in more urbanized locales due to several factors, not the least of which is connectivity with the internet. This “maturation” has also brought higher drug use patterns among youth that were previously only found in cities and suburbs (Aue, P., 2006). This is further compounded by a more “relaxed” attitude from adults concerning drug use (especially alcohol, tobacco, and marijuana) and anti-social behaviors in general (New York State Youth Development Survey, 2009). Mr. Sanchez, who has a broad array of professional degrees and worked in a variety of settings (including drug treatment), draws upon this knowledge base to articulate his strategic plan for prevention in an educational setting. Make no mistake about it, however- Mr. Sanchez is clearly speaking as an educator, first and foremost. The following account provides insight into a system (school superintendents) that must make difficult decisions regarding policies that have serious implications for not only their district, but the entire County. How this system views substance use and abuse (and the schools’ role regarding it) obviously affects these decisions. Mr. Sanchez has unique insight into the inner-workings of this process and provides a glimpse of their perspective (through his eyes and is not necessarily the perspective of the Wallkill Central School District or its Board of Education). This insight can bring greater appreciation of their concerns, capacities, and goals, making for a better partnership between school administrators and prevention professionals. This is an important consideration in the effort to prevent drug abuse by youth simply because the majority of their waking hours are spent in the school environment. While in school they are a captive audience that has been traditionally difficult to engage via other venues. Although it fortunately hasn’t been my experience, it is generally believed by parents (and other professionals, for that matter) that schools have a tendency to be secretive, manifested by the defensive stance many take when dealing with the public. Administrators appear suspicious of letting outsiders in on any in-house information that may put the school in a bad light. A good example of this is how schools viewed the Communities That Care youth surveys, a regular occurrence every even year for the past decade. Participation was often refused by districts because of the backlash of public opinion that ensued when results showed substantial drug use. Even if schools agreed to participate, results were not made public and kept practically under lock-and-key due to the fear of being blamed or possible recrimination from concerned parents. Considering this history, it is no wonder that several of my board members were shocked that all nine districts in our County agreed to participate in 2008 and further that they were willing to share local results with stakeholders who were frozen out in the past. With this somewhat spotted history of support, I thought gaining insight into this struggle (which impacts the sharing of information) would help in understanding what this suspiciousness was truly about, as well as how serious schools were about addressing the problem of substance abuse. |
| 1. How has public opinion or the threat of backlash impacted decisions about substance abuse prevention policy by school administrations, including the implementation of the Youth Development Survey and the subsequent dissemination of its results to parents, students, and the press? Mr. Sanchez acknowledged the attitude of secretiveness that has prevailed when it comes to fully committing to reducing substance use and abuse by youth. The real enemy, according to him, is for schools to allow the public to misinterpret what the survey is intended to do. By educating the public, the true purpose of the survey will overshadow and even cancel out any trivial attempts to sensationalize or otherwise twist the results. “People need to understand that the information is not just to satisfy curiosity seekers or even for purely scientific purposes, but to drive change. It is imperative that those involved: parents, teachers, community groups, professionals- everybody that cares, think the issue through by examining all aspects of it. That’s the only way we can change things”. He went on to say “Sure, it’s political. The superintendents have to think that way- it’s a part of their job’. The zone process (a method to separate survey results by breaking up the County into four distinct quadrants) avoids problems that occur when localities compete with each other for the lowest drug use patterns. “What it comes down to as educators is staying focused on our role, especially when working with other agencies. That we’re “not” the police, not the department of social services…each must stay within their area of expertise. When each entity knows their role they can pitch in to help based on that.” He went on to further define the school’s role: “Children need to develop a sense of responsibility toward their community. Our job as educators is to address this from a developmental perspective”. Mr. Sanchez gave examples of student involvement in the educational process, that involvement on this level acts as a precursor to further participation in adulthood as citizens. Grooming youth by encouraging them, listening to their input, and valuing their decision-making capacity has been central to Mr. Sanchez’s approach and fast becoming a priority for other school administrators. Mr. Sanchez returned to the importance of role, tying it to the notion of accountability to the State and Federal government. Academics are the responsibility of schools and are therefore an over-riding concern. This is easily discerned by the strict guidelines that have been set by regulatory agencies that largely determine funding and stability for the school districts under their scrutiny. Everything else is considered with that in mind. The rub that can’t be denied is that many related factors act as distractions to this focus, each worthy of attention because of their potential to disrupt the educational process. Because of this, drug prevention is a necessity and cannot be ignored. 2. I know you are familiar with prevention science, including the risk and protective factors related to drug use among youth. Which of these factors do you consider to be the best predictors of use? Which of these do you believe the school has the most influence over? Without delay Sanchez identified “relationships with adults” as the core determinant for future stability. Being attached to a person, a club, the school or community is crucial for youth. The presence of a healthy relationship will trump an assortment of risk factors, according to Sanchez. This has also been substantiated by prevention researchers, who echo his sentiment that claims certain protective factors counteract other ills like poverty and neighborhood disorganization, also identified as risk factors. (Hawkins, D., Catalano, R., and Miller, J., 1992). Sanchez further explained his answer by connecting self worth to healthy relationships with adults, who send positive messages to youth affirming their character and potential. To make his point, he referred to memories from early in his career as a counselor/teacher for BOCES (a State-sponsored alternative educational institution) in the early 1970’s. Many of the young people he had contact with that were using drugs were from affluent families. Wealth won out over family time in many of these households, resulting in absent parents and empty homes. Left without adult influence or supervision, these youth were more susceptible to drug use. He witnessed many of them gravitating to the drug culture because it was so easily accessible, especially when their families were not. 3. Besides academics, what other developmental areas do you think are the school’s responsibility to provide direction and guidance for youth? Mr. Sanchez cited several areas of concentration, including: physical education, socialization, decision-making skills, and establishing a work ethic, including the introduction of vocational alternatives as well as preparation for furthering their educational goals. He emphasized that even these were not done in a vacuum- other sectors of the community contribute to this developmental process, including the faith-based community, families, peers, and of course the media influence. Being cognizant and responsive to youths’ changing developmental needs is critical for educators. Sanchez discusses the importance of developmental learning approaches throughout the interview. 4. Another trend that has impacted on youth is the reduced participation of parents in school-based collaborations such as the Parents Teachers Association (PTA), evidenced by poor attendance at meetings. What do you attribute this to, and how can it be improved? While working as an educator in the Syracuse area in the 90’s, Mr. Sanchez was part of a white-paper panel on this very subject (the Compact for Learning). This has been identified as a problem at least since then. He cited a primary reason for this trend was that educators provided no clear vision for parents in respect to what we wanted of them. Lacking direction, parents floundered and eventually lost interest. The panel underlined the necessity of communicating expectations to parents about what their role was in relation to improving the educational process. In this vein, he believes parents’ role is to act as mentors to students, offering their experience, knowledge, insight, and support. Another role for parents are as committee members that help define and shape education policy and curricula. He also acknowledged the fact that parents are much busier today than in the past. Parents are working, there are more single-parent households, and parenting is a full-time job in itself. Mr. Sanchez suggested an alternative to achieve parent participation through the use of social networking, which would allow parents to be engaged without leaving their homes. This particular avenue has limitless potential. Another limiting factor is a resistance on the part of educators to listen to the criticisms of parents. It is difficult to listen when teachers and administrators are working hard to improve the system, only to be continually told that “it is not good enough”. “Patience is required when working with administrators and teachers that can get frustrated by this kind of feedback. Staff must accept that they have no control over parents, and further that their opinions may help us improve the system. He reminds teachers and administrators that the criticism is happening regardless of whether they hear it or not- wouldn’t they rather know what is being said so they can address it? Another reason for the disconnect is that administrators tend to be focused on their specific responsibilities in terms of requirements and standards and parents concerns aren’t necessarily congruent with these measures of performance. It takes time for staff to mature in their roles as professionals, which will increase resiliency and help them not to personalize feedback they receive. This in turn will help to “open up” the system to make it more transparent. 5. What, if anything, has changed regarding substance use and abuse among youth in the last twenty years? Mr. Sanchez responded that, in his opinion, the drug scene has changed considerably- that “the lid has blown off substance use and abuse in the last ten years”. His memory of drug use in the past is that it was “more innocent” than it is now- it has become a “dirty business, all about money at any cost”. While in the 70’s it involved a lot of marijuana use, with a small subgroup of poly substance users and a smattering of heroin use, now there is a whole assortment of drugs that youth use along with marijuana, which is still a favorite. He is concerned about the frequency of use of over-the-counter drugs, hallucinogens like ecstasy, and painkillers, which are now prevalent. “It seems that use was more about having fun in the 60’s and 70’s, but not anymore- it’s more hardcore and built into the underground economy”. Mr. Sanchez noted alcohol’s dominant role in our culture and its influence on our youth as well. Our society has become more prone to using substances to alleviate all discomforts, as demonstrated by all the commercials advertising drugs these days. This trickles down to youth, who are very vulnerable and looking for answers. 6. What do you consider the school’s role to be in regards to substance abuse prevention? Is your view shared with your contemporaries? First, Mr. Sanchez cited educating youth about drugs as a priority, that young people must be equipped with the necessary information to make informed decisions. He was clear in his belief that as educators, they must support, rather than punish or jail youth. “We must look at how we provide skills to youth regarding making decisions about partaking in drug use”. Mr. Sanchez returned to his theme of being part of a larger system, networking with other community agencies and organizations to improve this plight. “As educators we have a specific focus, police have their role, and each component has their own area of influence. Collaboration is essential if we are to make a difference”. He also reiterated his belief about the importance of adult relationships in kids’ lives, but that “in this age of litigation, it is not so easy to do”. Mr. Sanchez was referring to the concern many have that their relationship with a youth will be misunderstood, labeled incorrectly, or otherwise seen as inappropriate. “In the 60’s, it was easier to form relationships with youth as an adult, where now people tend to be fearful that it will be misconstrued. While Mr. Sanchez is realistic about the concerns his fellow superintendents have about the potential political fallout that comes from blaming schools for students’ drug use, he contends that this is not the issue. “Community members must be geared to focus on the fact that children are suffering and take serious our responsibility to these kids”. For those who would rather view it as somebody else’s problem, he asks who of them is willing to sacrifice their own child to indifference. Mr. Sanchez ended our interview by touching on his roots as a humanist and constructionist. This background makes him think in terms of building platforms for learning: that as students, teachers, as parents, all must build their own platform to be prepared to integrate new knowledge into their world. Mutual respect and shared responsibilities are themes regarding his view of how to best address the problem of substance use and abuse by students, which he sees as a solid foundation to plan and implement strategies for change. I believe Mr. Sanchez represents a new way of viewing how schools will address substance abuse, with renewed focus on partnerships with other community sectors and greater emphasis on relationships to provide a climate of support and easier access to adult role models for high risk youth. Notes
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