Students in Berkeley schools are reporting declining substance use rates and decreasing exposure to violence, according to responses to a biennial survey administered across several grade levels, and at Berkeley Technology Academy, in January. Berkeley Unified School District officials reported preliminary results from the 2012 California Healthy Kids Survey on Wednesday night, Nov. 14, to the Board of Education and school administrators. The survey data came with a range of caveats, but Student Services Director Susan Craig and Evaluation and Assessment Director Debbi D’Angelo told the board and co-superintendents that the results are “promising” and “reveal a change” in a pattern of “exceedingly high use rates” for marijuana and alcohol. Berkeley students still report higher marijuana use than the state average, though D’Angelo cautioned that an accurate comparison is hard to make because the most recent state data available are from 2007. Lifetime alcohol use rates in Berkeley were similar to, though slightly lower than, reported state use rates, and tobacco use appeared somewhat lower than the state numbers. (See the table above for more detail.) According to the staff report, “The 2012 [California Healthy Kids Survey] data strongly suggest that the prevention and intervention efforts that have been implemented at BUSD schools within […]
Students in Berkeley schools are reporting declining substance use rates and decreasing exposure to violence, according to responses to a biennial survey administered across several grade levels, and at Berkeley Technology Academy, in January. Berkeley Unified School District officials reported preliminary results from the 2012 California Healthy Kids Survey on Wednesday night, Nov. 14, to the Board of Education and school administrators. The survey data came with a range of caveats, but Student Services Director Susan Craig and Evaluation and Assessment Director Debbi D’Angelo told the board and co-superintendents that the results are “promising” and “reveal a change” in a pattern of “exceedingly high use rates” for marijuana and alcohol. Berkeley students still report higher marijuana use than the state average, though D’Angelo cautioned that an accurate comparison is hard to make because the most recent state data available are from 2007. Lifetime alcohol use rates in Berkeley were similar to, though slightly lower than, reported state use rates, and tobacco use appeared somewhat lower than the state numbers. (See the table above for more detail.) According to the staff report, “The 2012 [California Healthy Kids Survey] data strongly suggest that the prevention and intervention efforts that have been implemented at BUSD schools within […]