School Yearbook Features Kids Doing Drugs

Excerpted from WCVB Boston.

CONIFER, Colo. -- The teacher who oversaw the production of a high school yearbook that depicted drug and alcohol use issued an apology Monday, saying it was "completely inappropriate."

Conifer High School English teacher Amy McTague's apology was issued by the school district in response to a letter sent to them and the media that complained about the pages in the yearbook.

Parent Karen Marshall said in her Friday letter, "I am absolutely outraged at what has been printed in our student's 2007 yearbooks released a few days ago."

Her letter continued: "On p. 13, page title is 'Drug Addictions': there are pictures of students smoking pot, using bong paraphernalia, pictures of alcohol and prescription drugs with associated stories of each. Each caption is written in 6 pt. font so anyone over 40 would have to get their magnifying glass to read, which I feel was strategic on their part so parents would miss it, but its there all the same 'I smoke pot because it relaxes me, helps me deal with situations...there's nothing wrong with it.' says a student."

"p.33, there are pictures of police officers with stories of 'cops busting our parties' and 'law enforcement is a necessary evil' depicting law enforcement as an annoyance only to be disregarded if you don't get caught. I want our police officers to be respected for the heroes they are and this disgraces them and sends the wrong message.

"p.71 titled 'Regrets and Mistakes', shows a picture of three female students holding an MIP (Minors in Possession) certificate, one girl smirking in this picture, with the caption "...my regret was telling the cop the truth when they busted our party."

I think that this may be a blessing in disguise. Indeed, these are the things that are going on in the lives of many typical government school students. Parents who don't know what their child is doing and simply assumes that their child is not involved in these kinds of things is probably being played for a fool.

Parents should be outraged, but they should also wake up. If this outrage only causes parents to insist that they and the schools push their heads back into the sand, then there will be no good come of this blatant cry for help.