The Drug Abuse Resistance Education (D.A.R.E.) Program which was the first piloted in six Downers Grove elementary schools in January 1993, has expanded to all ten District 58 schools and four private schools in just two and one-half years. Expansion is anticipated into the Downers Grove Middle School system.

The original goals of the program were to provide students with skills to recognize and resist the social pressures to experiment with alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs; teach positive alternatives to destructive behaviors; and build a positive relationship between the Police Department and the community.

Although the feedback received relative to the program indicated these original goals were being met or exceeded, officials and the Police Department desired a more definitive indicator of the program's degree of success.

The Village Council, also seeking some measurement of the program's success, established a council objective for fiscal 1994/1995 to measure perceptions, successes and failures of the Downers Grove D.A.R.E. Program after two and one-half years of existence. This measurement was important to the mayor, manager and council to determine community perceptions about the program's overall effectiveness and to help them make informed decisions relative to future funding, program growth, expansion and cost effectiveness.

In order to meet the council objective relative to measurement and evaluation of the D.A.R.E. Program, in the fall of 1994, Deputy Chief Mark Weimer, and D.A.R.E. Officers Mike Willison, Paul Segroves and Russ Piszczek developed a comprehensive survey instrument designed to measure the preceptions of students, parents, and educators relative to program visibility.

1,500 surveys, consisting of 18 questions each, were distributed to D.A.R.E. graduates, parents and school administrators. Over 57% of the surveys were completed and returned, which is considered a high return rate.

Four general areas were surveyed: effect on student's life skills and behavior; communication within the family; attitudes and relations with the police; and overall effectiveness of the program.

The entire survey yielded positive responses relating to the program. Some statistical highlights, which supported the popularity and goal attainment of the program, were reflected in responses to specific questions. One question measured resistance skills. Ninety-eight percent of the students surveyed believed the program had a significant level of effectiveness in teaching resistance skills. Students also responded strongly to a question which examined the concept of consequences. Ninety-eight point two percent of students surveyed believed the program had a measure of effectiveness in teaching the concept of consequences, and 70.2% believed the measure was very effective.

The survey also indicated that the D.A.R.E. Program developed skills for mitigating the effects of peer pressure related to negative behavior. When asked if they would know how to respond to a friend if asked to do something that they didn't want to do, 88.3% of the student respondents stated they would know how to respond. When surveyed on whether the D.A.R.E. officers contributed to the development of positive student attitudes toward the D.A.R.E. officers and all police in general, 86.3% of the parents and 100% of educators surveyed believe the program is beneficial in shaping positive attitudes towards all police.

The overall effectiveness of the Downers Grove D.A.R.E. Program is perceived by the students, parents and educators combined was either "very good" or "good" in 92% of those surveyed.

In recent years there have been a number of critical studies which have attempted to measure the cost effectiveness and long term impact on D.A.R.E. graduates relating to substance abuse, life skills and attitudes. Studies of this type are difficult to conduct due to the high mobility of our society, which makes long term tracking and follow-up interviews difficult or impossible. Some of these studies have been critical and negative relative to the long term benefits of D.A.R.E., but the methodology and ability to track participants over a protracted period raises questions as to the validity of some of these study results.

The measure of effectiveness for the D.A.R.E. program cannot be looked upon as an exact science, but rather one of indicators. When you examine the objective of D.A.R.E. for Downers Grove, such as teaching life skills, shaping positive attitudes, and opening lines of communication, our survey results, along with every other indicator, affirm that the Downers Grove D.A.R.E. Program has been, and continues to be, very successful.

August 1995 / Illinois Municipal Review / Page 21