Under the Influence: The Town That Listened to Its Kids

The pleasant town of Kernersville, North Carolina, decided to take a peek at its teenage drug problem. Nestled in the heart of three large cities, this community was certain that its problem was not nearly as bad as the rest of the nation. Many adults believed that 10% of the high school students abused drugs. However, when the hometown newspaper—the Kernersville News—surveyed 1,706 local teenagers, it was shocked to report that 92% of the respondents believed that “most of the students in my school use drugs.” Stunned, the townspeople decided to stop waiting for the Government to do something and to tackle the problem for themselves. First, they took the teens out of the back seat and put them in the driver’s seat—airing their uncensored voices on the front pages of the newspaper. Then, the Kernersville Police Department joined forces with the News and the Winston-Salem Forsyth County Schools. Together, they broke down walls from here to Washington, to give their students the leadership and life skills that transformed their community. What resulted was the grassroots non-profit Kernersville Cares for Kids and 20 student leaders that turned the town right-side up. This book invites readers to become cub reporters and shadow the investigative journalist as she uncovers life-altering truths that changed a community. FIND OUT: How to convert negative peer pressure into positive peer influence What kids really want from adults What it's like to work as an investigative reporter How to create dynamic YOUTH driven organizations Why 80% of students in Kernersville enroll in the It’s My Call drug testing program Simple things YOU can do to make a difference with kids in your town ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Award-winning journalist, Patty Jo Sawvel, is pictured above with "her kids". She completed the Wake Forest University Addiction Studies Program for Journalists, author/edited the book, Issues That Concern You: Student Drug Testing, and contributed chapters to Drugs and Controlled Substances: Information for Students (published by Thomson Gale). Sawvel served as a founding member of Kernersville Cares for Kids. In Short, Sawvel cares. Chapter titles for UNDER THE INFLUENCE: 1. An Unexpected Opportunity 2. Getting Started 3. Survey 4. Getting Results 5. Community Response 6. Gathering the Facts 7. Publicity 8. Voluntary Drug Testing 9. Community Meeting 10. Meetings at Glenn and East 11. Losing Momentum 12. The Press Conference 13. Four Teens From Two Families 14. School Board Policy Change 15. Police Accept the Challenge 16. Kicking Off the Project 17. Victory 18. We Can't Do It 19. Finding a Better Way 20. A REAL Community Organization 21. Kernersville Kids Lead the U.S. 22. Three Drug Addicts 23. Middle Schools Come Aboard 24. Thirty Days of Madness 25. KCK Gets a New President 26. Letting Go 27. Getting a Better Grip 28. New Voices 29. A Study of the Test 30. Retreat 31. 10th Anniversary 32. Selling the tickets 33. Community Hug 34. The Final Lesson 35. A Mountain Top Experience 36. Grand Central Station 37. Passing the Baton 38. The Handoff is Complete Epilogue APPENDIX I: The Power of One Committed Person 348 Whether you are child or an adult—if you are alive—there is something simple and meaningful that you can do to help. APPENDIX II: Understanding Today’s Student 359 Times have changed and so have students. Knowing the truth gives you the power to help and not to hurt an already fragile situation. APPENDIX III: Parent’s Handbook 367 Harmful parenting myths and misguided wisdom has been handed down for generations. Scientific studies in this section disarm myths and reveal the truth so parents can be more effective.