Board of Education Bina Lefkovitz President Honorable David De Alba, Presiding Judge Paul A. Keefer, Mba, Ed.D

Legalization, increased availability, and easy access have led to misconceptions regarding marijuana use, particularly with youth. – We agree with this finding.

There are significant toxicity and health concerns for youth that can lead to diminished academic performance, regressed socialization, and numerous physical and health issues. – We agree with this finding.

Although many prevention programs and partnerships have been developed to date, additional needs for youth services continue to be identified. – We agree with this finding.

Although there are some data from the California Healthy Kids Survey (CHKS), consolidated data from multiple sources would paint a broader picture and help identify focus areas and funding needs for youth services. – We agree with this finding.

While Sacramento County has been admirably proactive in obtaining grant funding for youth prevention, additional funding would allow for more community-based programs and for more direct support to youth in the County’s middle and high schools. – We agree with this finding.

Since results from the CHKS are used for requesting funds and developing prevention programs, improved participation by school districts would benefit county youth and their families. – We partially agree with this finding. While 100% participation in CHKS would be ideal in terms of gathering feedback regarding marijuana and other drug use, California Education Code provides flexibility through the Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF) for districts to select surveys that best fit the context for their community. Surveys provide much more information than just feedback about marijuana and other drug use – under state law, districts have flexibility in the tools they use.

To increase awareness, provide a consistent message, and reach a larger audience, schools and other community organizations that serve youth would benefit from presentation materials related to marijuana. – We agree with this finding.

Since each school district in the County runs its own programs related to alcohol and other drugs, there is significant variation in the resources available to students and their families throughout Sacramento County. – We partially agree with this finding. This is a function of districts receiving dramatically different levels of resources from the state. To the extent possible from grant funding, districts are provided significant support, resources, and tools that are provided by the Sacramento County Department of Health Services, SCOE, California Department of Education, and many others that help create consistency, alignment, and coherence across our County system.