Fifth-graders graduate from D.A.R.E.

The Sidney Central School District recently held its annual graduation for fifth graders in the D.A.R.E. program.

The ceremony, led by Sidney Police Department’s Jan Gorshack, was held in the high school auditorium. Gorshack also teaches the course, which he’s done for 20 years.

Founded in 1983, D.A.R.E. (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) is a program designed to give kids the skills they need to avoid involvement in drugs, gangs and violence, according to the organization’s website. The program, which is in 75 percent of classrooms in the United States and in more than 43 countries around the world, is a police officer-led series of classroom lessons teaching kids how to resist peer pressure and live productive drug and violence-free lives.

During the graduation, each fifth-grade class did a skit to show the consequences of bad decisions. Each student was then presented their certificate by Gorshack and Sidney Mayor Andrew Matviak.

See a full gallery of photos below: