Sheriff's Office D.A.R.E. Program

The Moffat County Sheriff's Office welcomes you to the Drug Abuse Resistance Education Program D.A.R.E.

2007 will be the thirteenth year that the Moffat County Sheriff's Office will be teaching the D.A.R.E. Program to the children of Moffat County, to include communities of Craig and Maybell, Colorado. The Moffat County Sheriff's Office currently co-teaches the program in the Craig area with the Craig Police Department, offering the program during the second semester to all of the sixth graders at the Craig Intermediate School.

The Moffat County Sheriff's Office is committed to continuing to provide positive programs, like D.A.R.E. that provide positive alternatives to drugs, alcohol and violence for the youth of Moffat County.

D.A.R.E. Program Philosophy and History

D.A.R.E. is a prevention curriculum designed to teach children about drugs and alcohol, the consequences of their use, and the skills necessary to resist the pressure to experiment with their use. D.A.R.E. is more than information, it provides skills and training to aid children in saying "no" to drugs and alcohol. Students learn how to select and develop healthy alternatives to combat stress and fatigue. Although there are other programs that contain similar elements, D.A.R.E. is unique because it is taught by uniformed police officers.

D.A.R.E. began in 1983 as a joint project of the Los Angeles Unified School District and the Los Angeles Police Department. Because of the tremendous response by teachers, and the positive impact that the program has had on the lives of the children who have received it, D.A.R.E. is now being taught worldwide. D.A.R.E. lessons focus on four major areas:

1. Providing accurate information about drugs and alcohol.
2. Teaching students decision making skills.
3. Showing children how to resist peer pressure.
4. Giving children ideas for alternatives to drug use.

D.A.R.E, instructors employ a variety of activities (group discussions, role playing, etc..) to promote the healthy exchange of feelings and ideas to aid in the learning process.

An important part of the program's success can be attributed to the police officer selection. Each D.A.R.E. officer is selected on the basis of his or her experience and sincere devotion towards children.