DARE (drug abuse resistance education) is totally funded by donations. Each year over 1,100 5th graders teaches 1,100 5th graders Drug Abuse Resistance Education.
D.A.R.E. was founded in 1983 in Los Angeles and has proven so successful that it is now being implemented in 75 percent of our nation’s school districts and in more than 43 countries around the world.
D.A.R.E. is a police officer-led series of classroom lessons that teaches children from kindergarten through 12th grade how to resist peer pressure and live productive drug and violence-free lives.
There are numerous reasons for D.A.R.E.’s success. Its unparalleled delivery system utilizing law enforcement officers as instructors and the fact that it was the first program of its kind anywhere in the world have individually and collectively played a critical role in D.A.R.E.’s growth and expansion. However, to remain relevant, effective, and impactful requires much more… it requires the critical review and substantive contributions of highly respected experts in the field of education, science, and law enforcement. And it also needs the intelligent comments and recommendations of the program’s audience – school children. To this end, several years ago D.A.R.E. established three key Advisory Committees (listed below), in addition to D.A.R.E. Instructors Advisory Committee and Youth Advisory Board, the members of which are actively engaged in the development and implementation of virtually all aspects of the D.A.R.E. program.
Facing unparalleled drug abuse among our youth in the 1970’s and early 1980’s, visionary Los Angeles Police Chief Daryl Gates and the Los Angeles Unified School District in 1983 launched an unprecedented and innovative substance abuse prevention education program – Drug Abuse Resistance Education.
With each passing year, D.A.R.E.’s success was seen in classrooms and homes leading to rapid growth and expansion. As each decade passed and success increased, the challenges facing children and families also grew. Today, through the leadership of D.A.R.E.’s dedicated Board of Directors, and the tireless commitment and hard work of tens of thousands of officers and educators throughout America and around the globe, D.A.R.E strives each day to achieve its vital mission… to fulfill a vision.
The D.A.R.E. Mission
The D.A.R.E. Vision
A Vital Mission… to Fulfill a Vision