A single parent like my mother who consciously takes steps to compensate for the lack of a role model at home can create a home environment as positive as what is common in most two-parent homes. People talk and write a lot about the increase in crime and the decrease in security. Again, you probably won't find research material about your friends, but you'll find plenty of materials about young people. Education is a major national issue, and one in which by definition you as students are involved. Religious topics per se should be avoided, because proving them is ultimately a matter of appealing to faith.
Legalization of drugs is probably so overdone that it's hard to say anything new on the topic.