Sonora Elementary’s Response To Pot Bust

Sonora, CA — Following the discovery of third graders smoking marijuana on campus, Sonora Elementary School has taken a couple of steps to try and prevent this from happening again.

Superintendent Leigh Shampain says the district will purchase specific drug education materials for the lower grade primary education students, and their families. In the past, the district has only provided these types of materials for the adolescent aged students.

“The other thing we have done is implemented a different way of doing yard duty supervision during recess,” says Shampain. “These particular students found a way to get around the yard duty supervision to go to a bathroom that they should not have been going to, so the new procedures are to avoid that from happening in the future.”

The three third grade students were found smoking marijuana last Thursday, and the Police Department was quickly contacted. Asked to why it was not until several days later that information started to become known in the community, Shampain says, “We don’t discuss discipline with anyone but the parents that were involved. Those students were immediately suspended. If students were in danger, we would definitely discuss that with other parents. No other students were involved, or in danger.”

The Sonora Police Department’s investigation is ongoing.