New money and research may improve it. It's about time. The changes promise a better chance for more kids to avoid the devastating grip of drug abuse. Last year, research shows, one in four of America's 23.6 million teens had used illegal drugs in the previous 30 days. It is phenomenally popular with politicians, teachers and students.
Police love leading it.
Study after study published in the 1990s found no discernible difference in drug use between students who took DARE and students who didn't. DARE's leaders vehemently defended their method and attacked their critics, but eventually cities from Salt Lake City to Washington rejected it. Last year, the Department of Education cut off funding. Establish a network of relationships with the nation's schools. But that network needed to deliver a fresh, more effective message.