federal housing funds have been slashed 80 percent in this decade. Such drastic cuts force people into the streets and force some of them into the drug business. In the same sense, when federal funds are cut from employment assistance programs, the unemployed find money in the drug trade because they simply need work. If federal cuts to education continue, then students will be forced into the streets when they deserve to be in the classroom. If the President wants to get tough on crime as he said so often during the 1988 campaign, then he must provide more resources for the battle against drugs. The two are more closely connected than cigarettes and lung cancer. One county prosecutor in Dayton recently said, "we've got cases coming out of our ears. If it isn't a drug case, it's a robbery because somebody needs drugs." If the President is truly committed to his war on drugs, then he must provide real, new money to fight it. And that money must be put into programs that combat this crisis from every angle like we have in Ohio. To that point, I will repeat what I said to the Governmental Affairs Committee in September of this year: For every prison bed we fund, we should provide the resources for ten treatment beds. We've proved in Ohio that joining together can work. We proved it again last week. Now we have to be joined by the federal government. Mr. Faculty Members in Engineering Graphics, Mathematics, and Social Work The Ohio State University Larry Showalter Project Director President, Management Sources Columbus, Ohio EXECUTIVE SUMMARY May 9, 1989 Major funding for this study was provided by: Columbia Gas of Ohio, Inc. Communications and Marketing Consulting is provided by: Hameroff-Milenthal-Spence Advertising Professional services in support of this study were entirely or partially donated by: Dr. Richard Boettcher Dr. Josann Duane We gratefully acknowledge the assistance of the Columbus School Board, Superintendent's Office/CPS, and Columbus Public Schools. A total of 7,493 Columbus public school children wrote to the Mayor about drugs. During November and December, 1988, Mayor Dana G. Rinehart invited the school children of the Columbus Public School system to write to him with their thoughts on drugs and the drug problem, especially as they related to school. A total of 7,493 letters was received, representing a response rate of 11.5% of the total school enrollment. Elementary school students responded at the highest rate (13%), but all three levels had at least a 9% response rate. Letters came from students in 100 out of 130 city schools. The Mayor concluded that these letters could be a rich source of information about the thoughts and concerns of children, and could provide valuable input to the future direction of drug prevention programs in the city. Page 1 |