Elaine Surma, senior supervising narcotics agent with the state Attorney General's office, spoke to a crowd of about 100 about the current drug culture and the problems schools are facing today. (Photo by Wendy B. Lynn)

How many times have parents said that? How many times have you said it yourself? Is it true? Would you know?

The drug problems you might remember from your time in junior or senior high schools aren't exactly the same as what kids face today. According to Tim Meckey, Clearfield Middle School principal, the No. 1 problem they're seeing in the middle school right now is the exchange and consumption of prescription medications.

And not just the stuff they might be taking, though that's prevalent, but the stuff you're taking as well. Mr. Meckey and the school district student assistance coordinator and counselor, Ruth Ann Barbazzeni, pointed out to parents during a drug prevention program held in the middle school auditorium that kids will do anything to get a buzz, including raiding their parents', grandparents' and friends' medicine cabinets, taking whatever they find and sharing or selling it.

Most of the program was conducted by Elaine Surma, senior supervising narcotics agent with the Pennsylvania Attorney General's office. Ms. Surma said when a kid twists a knee or has to have surgery for some reason and then returns to school, the first question they are often asked by other students isn't "how are you?" but "what are you taking and are you willing to sell it?"

Ms. Surma addressed more than 100 adults, including parents, grandparents, teachers and other concerned citizens, about the drug scene today. She said that far too often they don't see many concerned parents, noting one colleague held a similar event at another school and only four parents attended. She was happy to see so many present, noting that good parents come and are concerned.

Kids today are exposed to drug use everywhere they go, Ms. Surma said, pointing to not only the television and Internet but also to convenience stores where "drug paraphernalia" is present. The stores sell things like candy necklaces and pixie stix, items which are also part of the drug culture, and so become used to seeing such things as "OK." The Internet is also full of information on chat rooms, message boards and various sites, which not only detail drugs, but how to make certain kinds and how to use them.

Ms. Surma conducted an overview of drugs, beginning with Ecstasy. She noted that if kids watch shows like "Sex in the City" they'll know Ecstasy is a sexual stimulant. In fact, it is known as a "pre-date rape" drug. The drug often looks like candy and so appears harmless and the senses are heightened when it is taken. This is where normally innocuous things, like pacifiers or lollipops, come in, as taking the drug also often results in a clenched jaw.

Ms. Surma added that the drugs, which come in from other countries, are often laced with something else, such as poison, and the kids have no idea what they're taking until it is too late.

The next drug presented was marijuana. Ms. Surma noted that marijuana is prevalent to the point where kids have been removed from school because their clothing smelled of marijuana because a parent or friend's parent or older sibling was smoking it on the way to school. She added that marijuana can be laced with anything, including bug spray, formaldehyde, rat poison and so on. The drug is also often linked with the onset of bipolar disorder, though she stressed that bipolar disorder can occur without the drug. Her point was that marijuana can alter the brain chemistry to bring about mental illness. She also said that people in prison for hard drugs say they always started with marijuana.

LSD is a drug many people associate with the 1960s, but Ms. Surma said it is currently experiencing a comeback along with other hallucinogenic drugs such as PCP (angel dust), mushrooms and so on. The result of the drug is that the user has no concept of time or space and some have been known to jump off of buildings, thinking it is the same as stepping off the curb and other very strange, and often deadly, consequences.

GHB, Gamma-Hydroxybutyric acid, is the No. 1 date rape drug in Pennsylvania, and two of the ingredients include a floor-stripper compound and Drano. Ms. Surma said it is odorless, tasteless and when the consumer passes out, he or she has no memory of what happens while unconscious. She pointed out that often students (usually girls) will leave a drink unattended and someone will slip the drug into their drink. The result is often assault.

Another drug on the rise is Ketamine, a drug used by veterinarians as an anesthetic for cats, and some veterinary offices have had to increase security due to break-ins.

Ms. Surma told a story of a former Hollywood stuntman who was traveling through the state and needed a hit. He stopped in Oil City, walked into a pharmacy and held a gun to the clerk's head, demanding OxyContin. Ms. Surma said the incident led to a police SWAT team being called in and a standoff, which ended safely. She said this is an example of what OxyContin and other similar drugs can result in.

She said the drug trials for OxyContin began in Appalachian coal mining towns where people would have severe back and other pain. They noticed a rise in addicts as well as people who were not in "legitimate" pain, perhaps with a headache or muscle aches after a long day, would take the medicine and become hooked. OxyContin is known as the "poor man's heroin" because when it is misused the effects are the same as heroin addiction, and once the source of the medicine is removed the addicts often resort to heroin.

This brought Ms. Surma to the discussion on prescription drugs and "pharm parties" where kids bring all kinds of pills, anything they can find, to a party and dump them in a bowl. The kids then grab a handful of pills and take them, often with alcohol. Some of the medicine includes Ritalin, Klonopin and Lortab, but she said they have seen everything from diabetic medication to over-the-counter meds including allergy and cold medicines and cough syrups used to reach the "fourth plateau." The fourth plateau results in an out-of-body experience similar to that from LSD, known as "robo-tripping."

The final drug, before a short video, was heroin. Ms. Surma said that in the late 1970s the only places they were seeing heroin was in the big cities where it was used by members of the entertainment industry, and it could be very pure. With the rise of cocaine, heroin saw a brief decline, but it is back and hitting hard. The drug is being transported across Interstate 80 and then is following other major routes of travel.

There are three kinds of heroin: Afghanistan produces 70 percent of the drug, with Mexico (Mexican Brown) coming in second and South East Asia close behind. She said terrorist organizations have been deeply involved in the trade in recent years and the drug is, at first, relatively inexpensive at $10 a bag.

Ms. Surma said the first time you take heroin it is, "the best feeling you ever get in your life." The first time it is taken it is overwhelmingly physically and psychologically addictive and you don't just walk away. Soon the habit is in the hundreds of dollars a day, resulting in criminal activity and, if the person is lucky, jail.

Ms. Surma also briefly discussed methamphetamines and showed a picture of a meth lab, which she called, "a dirty pit." She said common household supplies are used to make the drug, and the labs are environmental hazards.

Before showing the video she added that parents shouldn't forget the danger of alcohol, adding, "What really irritates me is that kids see movies and think that what's on film must be true."

The video, which Ms. Surma said she would like to have shown to all students in grades six through 12, was "Truth and Choices, Shane's Story." The film is about an "All American Kid" from Pennsylvania who started to drink and experiment with drugs in high school. Soon he was taking marijuana, LSD and heroin and finally started selling the drugs. Even though he nearly died as a result, he continued taking the drugs, eventually robbing a bank to support his habit. He is now spending time in the state prison system. The video states that he was the lucky one because he lived.

During the question-and-answer period the school staff present were asked what the consequences are for drug use at the school. The first offence immediately results in a 10-day suspension and the Student Assistance Program with mandatory assessment with a counselor.

Mr. Meckey added that drug awareness is taught all through school with a nine-week concentration in the sixth grade. He said the concentration used to be in the eighth grade but the school district noticed the problem was cropping up earlier and now it is considering moving the concentration to fifth grade.

Although the presentation did not cover everything, Ms. Surma noted that parents need to be vigilant and to check things out. She said there are home drug-testing kits available at drugstores that parents can make use of. She said combating the problem takes diligence, community involvement and parents involved with their kids.