About D.A.R.E.

D.A.R.E. IS SUBSTANCE ABUSE PREVENTION EDUCATION AND MUCH MORE!

 

This year millions of school children around the world will benefit from D.A.R.E. (Drug Abuse Resistance Education), the highly acclaimed program that gives kids the skills they need to avoid involvement in drugs, gangs, and violence.

D.A.R.E. was founded in 1983 and has proven so successful that it has been implemented in thousands of schools throughout the United States and many other countries.

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.

In its more than 30-year history, D.A.R.E. education programs have been designed to provide students with the knowledge and tools they need to resist drugs, alcohol, and other high risk behaviors.

Read the Story of D.A.R.E.

 

A Vital Mission… to Fulfill a Vision

The D.A.R.E. Mission

“Teaching students good decision-making skills to help them lead safe and healthy lives”

The D.A.R.E. Vision

“A world in which students everywhere are empowered to respect others and choose to lead lives free from violence, substance use, and other dangerous behaviors.”

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.

Experts Make the Difference

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 key Advisory Committees, the members of which are actively engaged in the development and implementation of virtually all aspects of the D.A.R.E. program.

D.A.R.E. America is “recognized to be exempt from Federal Income Tax as described in Internal Revenue Code Section 501 (c) (3)”. The Articles of Incorporation also state D.A.R.E. America “is organized under the California Nonprofit Public Benefit Corporations Law for charitable purposes.” The D.A.R.E. Federal tax ID number is 95-4242541.