Schools Deal With Addictions

Wariness In Springs On Alateen

At least three Springs parents have questioned the propriety of holding meetings of Alateen, a 12-step program for children of alcoholics, at the school, citing the First Amendment guarantee of separation of church and state.

The program, though it claims not to endorse any particular denomination, does promote the concept of a "higher power" as part of a spiritual philosophy.

Two of the parents spoke out toward the end of a Springs School Board meeting Monday night. The other sent a letter to the board. In a telephone interview Tuesday, the board president, Reginald Cornelia, disclosed that the letter had been discussed in closed session before the meeting began, apparently in violation of the State Open Meetings Law.

'Higher Power'

Phillip Zerillo and Susan Ewing were the parents to speak up at Monday's meeting. Mr. Zerillo questioned Alateen's belief in a "higher power," which he said was equivalent to religion and therefore did not belong in classrooms.

He was also concerned, he said, that a district staff member was being paid to facilitate the program, and told the board he had discussed his concerns with the American Civil Liberties Union.

Mr. Zerillo told The Star afterward that the Alateen program involved "too much of an entanglement" between religion and the public school. While he was not against the program, Mr. Zerillo said, he feared some people could take offense at its being offered while school is in session.

Voluntary Program

He said he would not be opposed to the program's taking place after school hours, provided there was assurance that no one religion wanting to use school property was being given preferential treatment.

Springs School has two Friday-afternoon Alateen groups, one for elementary students that meets after school hours and the other for junior high schoolers, meeting during "activity hour." The program is voluntary, and is considered by school officials to be an extracurricular activity.

Parents learned of the program in a letter sent out by Springs Superintendent William Silver. Dr. Silver said Tuesday that it has met just one Friday so far.

The school's psychologist, Mardie Smith, sat in at those meetings, he said, because school officials had some concerns about the outside consultants being sent by Alateen as facilitators.

A.C.L.U. 'Troubled'

The concerns were allayed, Dr. Silver said.

Another staff member, Debra Foster, coordinated the program, the Superintendent said, much as she does other programs, such as "Ba nana Splits" for the children of divorced parents.

"We are very troubled by a program that is based on Alcoholics Anonymous," said Barbara Bernstein, executive director of the Nassau County Chapter of the A.C.L.U., this week.

It was recently declared unconstitutional, she said, based on First Amendment principles, to condition parole or probation on participation in the A.A. program.

That decision, she said, was based on the protections of the Constitution and the fact that the Alcoholics Anonymous program is "based on religious values." That, she said, should apply to young, impressionable schoolchildren even more than to adults.

Alanon: 'Not Religious'

Springs School's claim, expressed in a letter sent home to parents, that Alateen is based on spiritual fellowship and not religious fellowship, is of no consequence, Ms. Bernstein said. "The courts don't make that distinction," she said.

The A.C.L.U. and the American Jewish Congress are sending a letter on the subject to the school this week.

"We are not a religious program, we are spiritual," said a public outreach staff member of the Alanon Family Group headquarters in Virginia Beach, Va.

"The principles of the 12-step program can apply to any culture or religion," she said, and cover "many, many types of religions and cultures." The 12-step program makes reference to a belief "in a higher power or the God of our understanding," she said, meaning whatever a participant considers to be God.

Program Prayer

According to the Alateen brochure: "For our group purpose, there is but one authority - a loving God as He may express Himself in our group conscience."

For atheists or agnostics, the staff member said, the "authority" "becomes something else."

Many Alateen meetings begin with a "serenity prayer," though not always. It could not be determined whether a prayer was said when the Springs groups met.

Closed-Door Session

Mr. Cornelia told The Star the board had discussed the Alateen matter in the executive session, which members of the public and the press are not allowed to attend, to ask its attorney to look into the constitutional questions raised. He said the parent's letter implied the threat of a lawsuit.

The discussion of litigation is one of eight specific exceptions to the Open Meetings Law.

Litigation Threat

Contacted Tuesday, the attorney, Steve Conlon of the Bridgehampton and Melville firm Payne Wood & Littlejohn, told The Star the board had invoked the "attorney-client privilege" to justify the closed session. He would not comment on what was discussed.

Robert Freeman, the executive director of the State Committee on Open Government, disagreed that the implied threat of a lawsuit was a legitimate matter for a closed session.

"The mere threat," Mr. Freeman said, of litigation "is not enough to discuss in executive session." He said the intent of the litigation exception was to allow public bodies to discuss "litigation strategy" without their opponents listening.

"Expedience"

Dr. Silver confirmed Tuesday that the matter was discussed in closed session, but came to the board's defense, saying it was "a question of expedience."

He said the board's attorney could not stay for the regular meeting in case the subject was brought up for discussion.

"There was no intent to hide," said Dr. Silver, adding that it was the School Board's intent to do its business in the public's eye.

After Mr. Zerillo and Ms. Ewing spoke, toward the end of Monday's meeting, the board agreed the matter needed to be looked into further.