In reading the Cabinet’s front-page article on our recent meeting we were extremely disappointed that one very key aspect of our presentation was lost in the sensationalism of the copy.
Specifically, although there has been alcohol abuse by some number of football players during this and past seasons, it is not a problem isolated to the football team, nor is it one unique to MASH!
The purpose of the meeting was not to indict some number of (football and soccer) athletes and hold them out for public criticism. Rather, the message we hoped would have been communicated was that a sizeable number of concerned parents, school officials and community leaders recognize that there is a problem within our communities (Milford, Amherst and Mont Vernon) … and that they love these kids and care deeply enough about them and their futures to be willing to openly address these problems and work to develop some meaningful solutions to them.
Frankly, it took a tremendous measure of courage by members of the MASH coaching staff an school administration to stand up in public and discuss a subject that has for too many years been carefully left in the closet. As for the shock which it has been rumored coaching staffs in nearby towns have expressed, we can only hope they aren’t
burying their heads to avoid a problem which it is highly likely exists there, too.
The fact remains that alcohol (primarily beer) and certain drugs (including cocaine) are readily and locally available to those teenagers who seek out such substances.
For the soccer and football parents who attended the meeting, there were mixed emotions. For some it was an eye-opener. For others, there was a sense of relief to learn they weren’t alone in trying to deal with a teenager who was using alcohol, even if only occasionally. And, for many, a subsequent, and very positive fallout of the meeting has been to open a dialogue between parents and students about their respective, and often differing views and concerns relative to alcohol and drug usage.
For all, there was unanimity that there should be a continued focus on the problem. They recognize that the daily messages our kids receive about alcohol and drugs are pervasive … but they are also convinced that with the cooperation of many parents, community leaders , and school personnel (including the athletic coaching staffs) … and with an open dialogue with the area student population … they can make a difference!
Interestingly, since the meeting, not only have many more area parents begun to learn about and discuss the subject of teenage substance abuse, but several of the upper classmen members of the football team have taken it upon themselves to set a new tone for the rest of the team (one of “let’s keep straight … and away from alcohol”).
In the days immediately following the substance abuse meeting, many students began to discuss what had happened and its implications to them, if any. Although some, perhaps many, felt the problem was “overblown”, the perception is that they felt it was prompted by the concern of many of their parents … with subsequent press coverage being reasonable and even-handed, focusing on the problem as one which cut far more broadly across the high school population than simply singling our an individual athletic squad.
Regretfully, however, the slanted and charged language in the Cabinet’s article has had the effect of portraying the members of the two athletic teams, whose numbers total less than eight percent of the school’s total population, as the major abusers of alcohol at MASH. The resulting alienation of these and other students was unnecessary and avoidable.
For those MASH parents who continue to believe that drug and alcohol abuse is rampant … it isn’t! For those who feel it’s a problem primarily limited to the football and soccer players … it’s wishful thinking! And, for those who want to believe that their son or daughter will never experiment … we hope they’re right, but they’d better keep and open dialogue with their kids.
The MASH Football and Soccer Booster’s Clubs and the coaching staffs of their respective sports remain active participants in the campaign against teenage substance abuse. In the process, they will continue to solicit input from parents, school officials, member of the community, and, equally important, students.
