Douglas County revives D.A.R.E. program in local schools

DOUGLAS COUNTY, Ill. (WAND) — A longtime drug prevention program has made a comeback in Douglas County schools, with law enforcement and educators hoping it will help students make better choices before they face real-world pressures.

The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office has reintroduced the D.A.R.E. program in schools across the county, focusing on building relationships with students and teaching them how to handle peer pressure, substance use and other challenges.

Douglas County Sheriff Nate Chaplin said the program allows law enforcement to connect with students in a positive way long before they encounter trouble.

“A common misnomer is that law enforcement is just arrest, arrest, arrest. But only about 3% of what we do actually results in an arrest. A lot of what we do is referrals to help people.”

Chaplin became a certified D.A.R.E. officer in 2007 while working for the Paris Police Department. When he became sheriff in 2021, he worked to bring the program back to Douglas County.

“I had seen the dividends that the D.A.R.E. program pays,” Chaplin said. “As soon as we were able to have the numbers, I wanted to bring back the D.A.R.E. program.”

Over time, the program had faded in many communities due to staffing shortages and shifting priorities in law enforcement. Chaplin said once the sheriff’s office was fully staffed again, they were able to reintroduce the program.

Now in its second year since returning, the program has expanded quickly.

“To sit here two years later and tell you we have a presence in every school is really exciting.”

The program also extends to Shiloh School in Hume, which serves students from both Douglas and Edgar Counties.

Principal Amy Jones said the district partnered with the county last year to bring the program to students.

“Deputy Rozelle started it last year with us, and he came this year. He has done an outstanding job building relationships with our students,” Jones said. “He has also taught them about peer pressure and the long-term consequences of making bad choices.”

School leaders said the program is especially important because students are facing difficult decisions at younger ages.

“In today’s world, students are faced with pressure at such an early age,” Jones said. “We wanted to be proactive and give students the skills they need to face difficult situations such as alcohol and drugs.”

Unlike the original version of the program, which many people remember for its “just say no” messaging, the modern curriculum focuses on decision-making and healthy habits before addressing drugs or alcohol.

“It is about good habits. It is about peer support. It is about choices,” Chaplin said. “We don’t even start talking about substance abuse until week five or six, because we want to give people the ability to get a good decision-making model first.”

The curriculum is primarily aimed at middle school students, an age when officials say many young people first encounter vaping, alcohol, or drugs.

“We’re seeing that with vapes a lot,” Chaplin said. “There’s a misconception that these are safe, and they’re not.”

At Shiloh Schools, the program focuses on students during key transition years like fifth grade, just before students enter junior high and eighth grade, and before high school.

Jones said the program is already making a difference.

“We’ve noticed kids having more conversations about not wanting to use vaping or alcohol,” she said. “We’ve also noticed a decline in our vape detectors not going off as frequently.”

For Chaplin, one of the biggest benefits of the program is helping students build trust with law enforcement.

“If anything, just to have even one police officer where a child says, ‘That’s my police officer,’ that’s neat,” Chaplin said. “You do that for a generation of kids, and you’re going to get better community relationships.”

The program is funded entirely through private donations, allowing schools to participate at no cost. As the program continues to grow, Chaplin hopes it will continue helping students make better decisions and strengthen relationships between law enforcement and the community. To support the program, reach out to Sheriff Chaplin at the Douglas County Sheriff's Office. Click here for more.