RBCS students 'DARE' to say no

James Cross reads his winning essay while Red Bank Police Officer Joey Fields listens.

On Wednesday, Jan. 24, Red Bank Charter School fifth-graders attended their DARE graduation. DARE, which stands for Drug Awareness Resistance Education, is taught by Officer Joey Fields of the Red Bank Police Department. The DARE material is introduced to students at an age when they can absorb the dangers of drug, alcohol and tobacco use, and use the information to help them make healthy decisions and resist future temptations.

Attendees included RBCS families, teachers, Principal Meredith Pennotti, board of trustees president (and parent) Bruce Whitaker, Officer Fields, Red Bank Police Chief Mark Fitzgerald, and Red Bank Mayor Pasquale Menna.

The graduates were presented with complimentary T-shirts, donated by Schwartz Chrysler/Mazda of Red Bank. Each student received a certificate, which indicated they had successfully completed the program.

In addition to the DARE education, students participated in an essay contest, and this year's winners were James Cross and Mary Kate McGuire. Both James and Mary Kate read their essays and they were each presented with a new bicycle funded by the police department.