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Americans use marijuana more than any other illegal drug according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse. And the number of teens using it has grown in recent years. But a local school district has the numbers going in the opposite direction.
Most parents have the same sort of dream for their children.
"I want them to grow up healthy and strong and have a good future," said Jennifer Cervantes, who's son attends Kindergarten in Goddard.
A key part of that dream? A good school system that not only provides an education but also protects students from things like marijuana. It's a drug many more teens are using nationwide. In 2012, 22.9% of 12th graders used marijuana in the past month. That's up from 18.8% in 2007.
At the Goddard School Administration Building, they've been working very deliberately over the last decade or so to make sure that their students do not follow the national trend.
In Goddard the percentage of students using marijuana has dropped from 7.8% in 2007 to 5.61% in 2012, according to the annual Communities That Care survey.
The district credits a team effort at all grade levels to make sure students have the tools to stay drug free.
"We're directing their energies in a more positive way and working with students so that everyone's involved in something," said Teresa San Martín, Assistant Superintendent. "You know, are you involved in school activities? In school clubs? Are you on one of the ball teams?"
A key component of that plan is the schools themselves.
"There's a commitment in the community that we have small schools," said San Martín. "We have counselors in all buildings and nurses in all buildings and get to know our students."
And that's not cheap.
"It becomes the burden on the parents, the family, the community that lives here," said San Martín. "They were willing to put forth the money and pass those bonds so that we could have smaller schools."
But worth it to parents like Jennifer Cervantes, who's moving her family into Goddard for the schools.
"It feels good that I chose a good school district, a good neighborhood for it," said Cervantes.
According to the annual Communities That Care survey marijuana usage in Goddard schools peaked in the late 1990s at 14.88%. That was higher than the state's average or Sedgwick County's average. Today, the usage rate at Goddard sits at 5.61% compared to 9.37% in Sedgwick County and 9.06% in the entire state.