Trustees on Jan. 13 agreed by consensus to establish a board subcommittee focused on drug awareness, prevention and treatment after extended public comment and trustee discussion about a previously proposed memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Riverside University Health System (RUHS).

Trustee Emil Barham argued the district needs a treatment/intervention program and urged the board to return the RUHS MOU to a subcommittee for oversight. He described prior programmatic work and said an MOU could bring clinicians into clearer coordination with schools. Trustee Jen Wiersma and Dr. Melinda Anderson said no district legal obligation requires an in-school program and noted alternatives and referral resources (including Care Solace) are available; Wiersma said parents retain choice and the prior MOU differed from earlier district programs.

After back-and-forth about whether the MOU had been previously approved or defeated, the board agreed to rename the group 'Drug Awareness, Prevention and Treatment' and to staff it by consensus with Trustees Wiersma, Barham and Dr. Anderson. Staff said referrals to county behavioral health remain available without an MOU and cautioned that claims of a "100% success rate" for any intervention should be treated skeptically.

Public commenters and union representatives urged prompt action to provide families with options; some parents and community members said the prior RUHS arrangement helped students and asked for an equally accessible alternative. Trustees directed the new subcommittee to meet with county partners and return recommendations on options and oversight.