Dare homework

DARE also soon won a $140,000 grant from the Department of Justice to expand the program to the national level. And Congress passed the “Drug-Free Schools and Communities Act of 1986,” which set aside 10% of State Grants to Governors for police-staffed, in-school, drug education programs, and mentions DARE by name.

The lesson content is aligned with D.A.R.E. Elementary and Middle school program concepts, continuing the focus on understanding risk behavior and making decisions that support safety and health. Identify themselves as important members of their school community.

There was just one problem: DARE didn’t work. Students who went through DARE weren’t any less likely to do drugs than the students who didn’t. In fact, there’s some well-regarded research that some groups of students were actually more likely to do drugs if they went through DARE.

When the school opened in September 1983, the LAPD took to the classroom to both teach kids about the dangers of substance abuse, boost their self-esteem, and help them practice “just saying no” (a la Nancy Reagan). Within a few years, DARE was a regular fixture in LA schools.