Educators, psychologists and social workers have long stressed that parental involvement is vital to raising drug-free children. Now, some parents in Hicksville have banded together to do just that.

Aiming to increase awareness of substance abuse among Hicksville's teenagers, the parents have formed a group devoted exclusively to addressing this issue, organizers announced this week. The group, known as Parents Decide, is intended to serve as a training and information resource for parents, through which parents can share knowledge about drug use in the community, and work together to prevent it, according to Thomas Asher, one of the organizers. The group's first class of 14 parent trainees will graduate from a four-day, 14-hour workshop, this Saturday, June 9, at Hicksville High School. The training was conducted by Dr. Ron Savarese of Manhasset, a practitioner in the area of substance abuse prevention and rehabilitation.

"We want to know what's going on. We want to have the most current and up-to-date information on types of drugs that are out there -what the effects are," Mr. Asher said, noting that parents are learning about the prevalence of such currently popular drugs as ecstacy, heroin, and mushrooms. "The parents aren't in as much communication as they used to be, like when we were all younger. So we're trying to make it so that parents can now be a resource for each other - to be able to get straight information, and get answers, and get help - to pull this into the spotlight a little bit, take it out of the dark, back rooms somewhere, and where nobody wants to talk about it. As a community, we can do more than we can as individuals."

His wife, Marie Asher, who is also one of the organizers, added, "A major problem we're having in Hicksville is these house parties." Marie noted that during the training, it was concluded that, "If there's a house party for kids in Nassau County, there's alcohol at it."

Sometimes teenagers hold the parties when their parents are away vacationing, and the teenagers bring alcohol in, she said. In other cases, she said, parents are actually present and provide the alcohol, apparently because they feel that in this way they can control the youngsters' drinking. This she warned, can lead to tragic consequences, such as drunk driving accidents and related liabilities.

About 30 local residents are involved in the Parents Decide effort, which is being coordinated by the Ashers and Betty Lang. The current parental movement to take a stand against drugs and alcohol in the community began in September, Mr. Asher noted, when the issue was brought up at Hicksville Parent Teacher Association (PTA) meetings. Since that time, the PTA has hosted two public conferences on the issue. With the initiation of Parents Decide, those involved in the effort hope to bring more such educational programs to Hicksville.

The group plans to arrange for experts to speak about the issue before local community groups, and at such public events as the Homecoming Parade and 9th Grade Orientation.

"Now that we're getting this training under our belt, we want to have programs," said Mrs. Asher, "And then we'll always be a resource to parents."

In addition to addressing the teen house party issue, Mr. Asher noted that the group wants to reach students as early as the elementary level, where some have already been exposed to drugs and alcohol.

"We want to get the message out to the younger kids," he said. "Believe it or not, there are fifth graders being offered marijuana and booze."

He added, "We just want to bring attention to this, that it is starting earlier and earlier, and that nobody is safe. It doesn't matter where you live, what your income, what your ethnicity - any of that - it's just something that isn't going away. We're under no pretense that we're going to be able to make the drug problem in Hicksville go away. But knowledge is power, and we're trying to empower the parents in regard to this."

Parents who wish to get involved in this effort may call Thomas Asher at (516) 933-0164. "We're looking for people, and I think we're off to the right start," he commented, adding, "Knowledge is power."