Looking for signs of trouble

Program shows parents it could be their kid

Thursday, Sept. 15, 2005

by Katie Champion

Staff Writer

Drinking alcohol, doing drugs, eating disorders, self-mutilation, bullying, smoking, stealing and lying – destructive behaviors that some teens fall prey to.

While most parents may think ‘‘that can’t happen to my kid,” a program that is gaining momentum in county schools is teaching parents how to look for warning signs and what to do if they discover that their child has made a bad decision. The not MY kid Coalition of Carroll County is sponsored by various community service groups that assist families in times of crisis.

As part of the ‘‘not MY kid” campaign, Del. Susan W. Krebs (R-Dist. 9B) of Eldersburg addressed a group of Mechanicsville Elementary School parents on how to seek help, if needed.

‘‘Be vigilant, be a community – if you know someone else’s child is engaging in risky behavior, let someone know,” Krebs said, adding community relationships and asking for help can save lives.

On back-to-school night before a packed cafeteria of fifth-grade parents in Gamber, Krebs showed a short film about a parent whose child made a life-threatening decision while in high school.

Krebs said that many parents become embarrassed when their child engages in an activity that is destructive. Parents spend time teaching their kids values and morals and think ‘‘well that’s not my kid,” she said.

While Krebs said that activities, such as drug and alcohol abuse are uncommon in younger students, she warned parents to be on the lookout for behavior that could lead to more serious issues.

Parents at Mechanicsville Elementary School are not the only ones to hear the message of not MY kid this fall – representatives from various county organizations working on the project visited all 37 schools in the school system. Most programs are presented during back-to-school nights.

Carroll County is one of a few school systems in the state to begin a program in all of its schools.

Thomasina Piercy, principal of Mount Airy Elementary School, decided to join the effort of other counties with the not MY kid program after tragedy struck her family. She brought the program to Carroll six years ago after learning that Howard County already had a similar one in place as part of a national campaign.

‘‘I went to [Superintendent Charles I. Ecker] about my desire to help other parents who may be seeing red flags with their kids,” Piercy said, adding that Ecker immediately connected with his colleagues in Howard County. ‘‘We became a sister chapter and that has allowed us to become much bigger than what we could have ever done.”

In every school newsletter countywide, a special section is reserved for a message from not MY kid. Topics appropriate for each grade level are addressed and parents are told what to do if they suspect their child or another’s is in trouble. Local and toll-free numbers are also distributed to parents throughout the school year.

‘‘A lot of times, kids are afraid of getting in trouble and they want to believe that their friend is OK so they don’t tell anyone,” Piercy said, adding they can share their concerns by calling one of the phone lines. ‘‘This is completely anonymous, they feel safe and they can talk to a live, human voice.”