Board member: One pass depends on another

NAPLES: One Collier County school board member says parking on campus is a privilege and wants students to earn it. He believes for students to earn a parking pass, they should have to pass a drug test.

Getting to and from the classroom could get much more difficult for some kids.

"Really I look at it as a safety issue and I hope to save lives," said Collier County School Board member Steve Donovan.

Since the 2007 school year, Collier County athletes and cheerleaders have been randomly drug tested.

Donovan now wants to expand that to any student who drives to school.

"Kids are dying from drugs. They’re killing themselves and they don’t know it," Donovan said.

Donovan says if athletes can get in trouble for using marijuana, cocaine, or prescription drugs, other students should have something on the line.

"I think it’s a smart idea. I mean, parking is a privilege and you can get it taken away easily," Gulf Coast High School senior Jewel Davis said.

"I think it would make a big difference," freshman Alex Boehm said.

The non-profit group Drug Free Collier says similar testing exists in Polk and Nassau Counties and that it can lead to a five percent drop in usage.

"Anything that is preventative, Drug Free Collier is behind," said Drug Free Collier Executive Director Dr. Maria Victoria Delgado.

As far as penalties go, Donovan wants any student caught by a random test to start drug counseling and have their parking permit taken away.

"A car is everything to a child," Donovan said.

The biggest roadblock may be money. Donovan thinks it could cost at least $250,000 per year. But he hopes to bring the drug testing plan to the school board over the next year.