County Teachers To ID Student Drug Abuse

Nov 15, 2014 at 11:07 am by bryan


Rutherford County Schools soon plans to offer training for teachers that will help them identify signs of youth prescription drug abuse.

The idea to train teachers stemmed from Governor Bill Haslam's "Prescription for Success" plan, which was rolled out in Rutherford County in September by Doug Varney, the Tennessee commissioner of mental health and substance abuse.

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"In response, RCS is partnering with CADCOR to provide in-service training to teachers," said Kim Snell, the district's homeless services coordinator and a CADCOR member. "We hope to offer several opportunities and would like to train 100 teachers this year."

Stephanie Strutner with Anderson County's Anti-Drug Coalition will lead the training for Rutherford teachers, Snell said. The trainings will be scheduled sometime between now and February.

Rutherford County Schools is partnering with the Child Advocacy Center of Rutherford County to conduct a public awareness campaign to educate the community about the impact of substance abuse on children and youth. Through that partnership, the district is participating in the "19 Days of Activism for the Prevention of Abuse and Violence Against Children and Youth."

For additional information, contact Community Relations Coordinator James Evans at (615) 893-5812 or evanj@rcschools.net.

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