John Smith, age 17 [not his real name] is a typical high school senior at Marple Newtown Senior High. Smith spends his days going to school, having dinner with the family, and going out with his friends. The only difference between Smith and other students is that while others are taking their biology tests, he is prowling the hallways waiting to meet his next customer.
“Dirty money is the easiest money to make, but it’s a high risk,” Smith says. “I know some teachers are just itching to spot me in the act.”
From September till now, Smith says he has made more than $3000 selling marijuana, and he won’t stop there.
“College… I don’t know what I want to do yet, but I know how I’m paying for it,” he says, laughing.
Smith says that the only reason he started to sell was purely for free marijuana. Now that he has seen how much someone can make dealing, he doesn’t know if or when he will stop dealing.
Smith is not alone in the quest to get high.
According to the National Institute of Drug Abuse, in 2009, 32.8 percent of 12th graders have used marijuana and 26.7 percent of 10th graders have used.
“In fact, studies show that heavy marijuana use impairs a teen's ability to concentrate and retain information,” Dr. Larry S. Fields, president of the American Academy of Family Physicians said. “And this is especially problematic during these peak learning and testing years.”
Now more than ever studies are being done to the brain, rather than just intellectually and physically. The teens that started smoking marijuana at an early age and still had a developing brain could potentially be more vulnerable to neuropsychological deficits, including verbal skills, experts say.
Surveys done in 2009 by the Centers for Disease Control show those students who smoke marijuana have a lower intelligence lever and lower scores in school. Sixty six percent of students who have ever used marijuana mostly get grades of D’s and F’s. Twenty one percent have average grades of mostly A’s. Out of the students who are currently using, 48 percent have D’s and F’s, and only 10 percent have A’s.
Many experts say all roads lead to marijuana acting as a “gateway drug.” Stanton Peele a psychologist says, “Alcohol and cigarettes along with marijuana don't guarantee, but only make it more likely, that some will use harder drugs.”
Some principals, faculty, and board members are working to get rid of the drugs in their schools.
“Lockdown” programs and other programs mandate strict rules and restrictions for the students, so they cannot use or distribute drugs on school grounds.
Private and charter school rules apply outside school grounds as well, so if a student is smoking a cigarette at Wawa, he could face serious consequences, such as suspension or expulsion.
A new initiative by the National Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign hopes to educate teens and parents about the risks of smoking marijuana. Mothers Against Drunk Driving are also fighting for their kids to stay away from the drugs and alcohol. They believe that if someone is driving under the influence of marijuana then she is a danger to herself and others.
“Together, parents and teachers can lay the foundation for raising healthy, drug-free students,” said David Ward, president of the American Council on Education. “We need to protect future citizens and leaders. And we can only do this if we keep our kids away from drugs and help them focus on their academic futures.”
According to crimereports.com, Marple Newtown police have had 14 drug possession charges from June till now of this year. Six of those have been marijuana charges.
Pennsylvania state law for marijuana possession with over 30 grams and 1st offence is misdemeanor. Maximum sentence is 1 year in jail and a $5000 fine.
Smith said he is worried more about getting caught by police than he is his academics.
“Who wouldn’t want my job,” Smith said. “I play video games while you are crunching numbers from 9 to 5. I wake up when most people leave for lunch… I could never give this up.”
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