The State College Bureau of Police Services is trying to fight area drug use, and they have the attention of elementary school students.

The police and Our Lady of Victory School, 800 Westerly Parkway, have adopted a program which originated in California.

Project DARE, Drug Abuse Resistance Education, was introduced at the school early last month and will be implemented in the other area schools next year.

The Los Angeles-based program began in the classrooms of Our Lady of Victory after students returned from winter vacation, said Margaret Fleming, school principal.

Project DARE provides up-to-date information on drugs, alcohol and tobacco and teaches students decision-making skills, said David Caster, State College DARE coordinator.

The program shows students how to resist peer pressure, he said.

"It's not enough to tell them to 'say no' -- you have to give them ways how to do it," Caster said.

While Our Lady of Victory has not had a problem with drug use in the past, Fleming said she hopes DARE will help keep it that way in the future.

"I hope it would keep the children aware of drugs, and I hope they never use them," she said.

DARE prepares children for pressures they might be presented with in junior high school, Fleming said. The program is used in all of the elementary classes -- kindergarten through sixth grade -- but is stressed in the higher grade levels.

The kindergarten students take two very basic classes while the sixth-graders have 15 classes with a graduation ceremony upon completion, Fleming said.

DARE instructors are local police officers who present the information to the children while in uniform.

Uniformed police officers promote the idea that the officers are not just instructors, they are also role models for the students. The uniform is meant to lend to the officers' credibility and instill a greater respect for the law, Caster said.

"The children are very enthusiastic. Just seeing the officers around school makes them feel very comfortable. The officers come in as friends so they wouldn't be afraid to go up to them," Fleming said.

The classes are taught by officers David White and Joseph Grego, of the State College police, chosen because of their experience with previous elementary school programs. They attended a satellite training academy in Virginia where they were certified as DARE instructors.

"State College Bureau of Police firmly believes in pro-active policing. In the long run we hope we won't need as many reactive cases," Caster said.

Officer Caster discovered project DARE in Los Angeles through his work as a crime prevention specialist.

Project DARE originated in 1983 as a combined effort between the Los Angeles Police Department and the Los Angeles Unified School District, said Sgt. K. Giberson, Los Angeles supervisor and former DARE trainer.

"Chief Daryl Gates of the LAPD presented the school district with the idea when the number of narcotic-related arrests rose to 50,000 a year and there were only 48,000 cells available to meet the demand. It was decided that incarceration was not the answer to the city's problems and they turned to education," Giberson said.

DARE has seen positive results in the Los Angeles area, where it reaches over 200,000 students a year in the elementary, junior high and high schools, Giberson said.

"Principals and teachers report a decrease in school vandalism and truancy while there has been a marked improvement in work habits and grades and a more positive attitude toward school and the police."

"It is important to note that DARE is not only a police program -- it is a parents, police and school program," Caster said.

DARE programs are being introduced in all states except Delaware, and in Australia and South Wales, said Linda Babel of DARE America, the national headquarters.