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Wednesday, February 28, 2007

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Students asked about drug, alcohol use

Minnesota students in sixth-, ninth- and 12th-grades will be asked between now and April 15 to fill out an anonymous survey that asks about their behaviors, such as tobacco, alcohol and other drug use, as well as other risky behaviors.

This survey, administered every three years since 1989, provides students, parents and their communities an important vehicle for ongoing communication about issues related to youth health, safety and academic success.

Here is what students in Crow Wing County reported in 2004 about their their marijuana and hashish use:

¥ 1 percent each of sixth-grade boys and girls reported using marijuana or hashish once or twice during the last 12 months while 1 percent of sixth-grade boys reported they used the drugs 40 or more times during the past 12 months.

¥ 3 percent of ninth-grade boys and 4 percent of ninth-grade girls reported using one to two times during the last 12 months while 4 percent of ninth-grade boys and five percent of ninth-grade girls reported using 40 or more times during the last 12 months.

¥ 6 percent of 12th-grade boys and 5 percent of 12th-grade girls reported using marijuana or hashish one or two times during the last 12 months while nine percent of 12th-grade boys and 2 percent of 12th-grade girls reported using 40 or more times during the last 12 months.

Of those ninth- and 12th-grade students in Crow Wing County who reported they had used drugs during the last 12 months, they were asked how they obtained the drugs:

¥ 80 percent of ninth-grade boys and 85 percent of ninth-grade girls said they got the drugs from friends; 60 percent of ninth-grade boys and 57 percent of ninth-grade girls said they bought them from people they knew; 40 percent of ninth-grade boys and 39 percent of ninth-grade girls said they got them at parties; 30 percent of ninth-grade girls and 13 percent of ninth-grade boys said they got them by getting someone else to buy for them; 13 percent of both ninth-grade boys and girls said they got them from family members; and 13 percent of ninth-grade boys and 19 percent of ninth-grade girls said they got them from people they didn't know. Eight percent of ninth-grade boys said they bought them on the Internet. Three percent of ninth-grade boys and 13 percent of ninth-grade girls said they took them from their homes while 13 percent of ninth-grade boys and 15 percent of ninth-grade girls said they took them from a friend's home.

¥ 76 percent of 12th-grade boys and 88 percent of 12th-grade girls said they got the drugs from friends; 72 percent of 12th-grade boys and 46 percent of 12th-grade girls said they bought them from people they knew; 48 percent of 12th-grade boys and 46 percent of 12th-grade girls said they got them at parties; 28 percent of 12th-grade boys and 8 percent of 12th-grade girls said they bought them from people they didn't know; 13 percent of 12th-grade girls and 8 percent of 12th-grade boys said they got them from family members; 32 percent of 12th-grade boys and 21 percent of 12th-grade girls said they got them by getting someone else to buy for them; 12 percent of 12th-grade boys bought them from the Internet; 8 percent of 12th-grade boys said they took them from their home while 20 percent of 12th-grade boys said they took them from a friend's house.

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