Sofia Reeves / The Mossy Log
LC will defer to Student Rights and Responsibilities in event of two, more positive cannabinoid tests
At a meeting in February on the 2022-23 season, the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) voted to adjust the threshold of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) metabolites that can be found in an athlete’s blood stream from 35 ng/ml to 150 ng/ml. The adjustment applied retroactively to the 2021-22 season.
These changes are relevant as marijuana has become a contested topic with the arrests of Britney Griner, a former Women’s National Basketball Association champion and two-time Olympic gold medalist, and retired National Basketball Association player Iman Shumpert. Both attempted to fly with cannabinoids. Griner was arrested in February at Sheremetyevo International Airport on the way to play in a Russian league over the summer. Shumpert was arrested at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport on his way to Los Angeles.
Both of these cases emphasize the factor of location in the legality of marijuana, that makes the attainment of cannabinoids easier and safer in the vicinity of Lewis & Clark. Additionally, both Griner and Shumpert are Black, and thus 3.64 times more likely to be arrested for marijuana possession despite race being an insignificant indicator of usage. Lastly, many are suffering in prison because of marijuana usage and do not have the notoriety to make headlines.
In contrast, the relaxed regulations for NCAA athletes disproportionately benefit casual users who can still pass drug tests despite somewhat recent consumption. Frequent users will still test positive unless they are able to break their habit for a longer period, as THC metabolites are built up over time and habitual consumption will keep urine concentrated well over the NCAA threshold.
The policy also loosens the penalties of positive tests, only putting eligibility at stake in the event of two or more positives. In that case, a student will be enrolled in an education and management plan. For LC students, this would be the Substance Abuse Prevention and Education Services which is run by Student Rights and Responsibilities.
An athlete will only be barred from competing for use of cannabinoids if they fail to comply with the school’s program or the school refuses to attest to the course’s completion. If a student tests positive twice, and one of those situations occurs, they will be ineligible for a quarter of their competitions. If they test positive three or more times, then they will be ineligible for half of their competitions.
According to Director of Physical Education & Athletics Mark Pietrok, the NCAA is the only body that would test student-athletes specifically.
“Our prevailing philosophy is to treat students and student-athletes under the same guidelines as regular students,” Pietrok said. “If there’s a reason for the school to want to drug test somebody then it shouldn’t matter whether they are an athlete or not.”
Pietrok went on to explain that student-athletes are only tested at NCAA championships, even if they have already tested positive once, and as the revised guidelines state, would only risk ineligibility if this happened multiple times. This policy does, however, open up inequities by sport.
“Let’s say you’re at the track championshipship, track championships are a five-to-six day championship, and let’s say you get tested on day two, there’s probably no ability for the NCAA to do a second test to see if there’s ongoing use,” Pietrok explained. “Soccer championships take place over a three-to-four week period. I can see where the NCAA tests the first week and then week two or three (they would test) again.”
The NCAA is not the anti-marijuana juggernaut it once was, as their regulations have loosened in accordance with state laws. But, even without NCAA intervention, the use of marijuana is illicit on LC’s campus and in the state of Oregon for those below the age of 21. However, enforcement is inevitably difficult as the campus and the state it occupies have contradictory guidelines and marijuana use is common for LC students.
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