Principal Eloy Chavez knows when kids come to his school, it's already been a long road. He calls the ACE Community Challenge Charter School a last stop for teens trying to get out of drugs or gangs.

"We work with high-risk students, kids who have been throwaways, kids who maybe have not attended school for maybe one or two years," said Chavez.

Chavez says 96 percent of the student population at the Adolescent Counseling Exchange Community Challenge Charter School has some history of substance abuse. That's why he says his program, located at 9th and Santa Fe, is perfect for the U.S. Department of Education grant of $150,000 to perform random drug tests on students.

"If students don't go to school healthy, drug free, feel like they're in a safe environment, a secure environment, they're not going to learn to their capacity," said Deborah Price, assistant deputy secretary for the U.S. Department of Education. Price works in the Office of Safe and Drug-free schools.

Legally, the drug tests can only be performed on students who are enrolled in extra-curricular activities or who volunteer for the program. If students fail the test, there are no punitive consequences. They will be forced to meet with counselors from the Denver Health Authority to receive treatment for their drug use.

"It's too easy to hear the words 'drug testing' and think that something heavy-handed is being done. That is exactly opposite of what's really happening here," said Bill Bethke, attorney for the ACE Community Challenge Charter School. "This is really designed to be a tool for students who have already made a choice to change their lives and to try to change the dynamics of their family."

Students in the program will be essentially placed in a lottery eight to 12 times a month. The names chosen will be subjected to a urine drug test through a local laboratory. The tests will be done throughout the school year.

Some feel it is a waste of money and a violation of student rights.

Mason Tvert is a marijuana activist who founded SAFER (Standing for Safer Alternative for Enjoyable Recreation). Tvert and his group successfully got voters to decriminalize marijuana in the Denver city limits. Tvert attended the announcement and had a series of questions and criticisms of the program.

"Random student drug testing sends a message that we don't trust kids, that we want to invade their privacy," said Tvert. "We want to collect their urine and we want to treat them like criminals and force them to prove their innocence."

Tvert claims that studies of other drug testing programs have shown that they don't work.

"The largest study on random student drug testing concluded it has no effect on the prevalence and frequency of student drug use," said Tvert. "They might go on to other hard drugs like heroine, methamphetamine, even alcohol. These are drugs that you cannot test for more than one day out. What this is - is a marijuana test."

Dr. Bertha Madras is with the White House's Office of National Drug Control Policy. Madras disputes Tvert's claims, saying the drug testing grant has been working in schools since 2003.

"Our joint commitment in helping reduce youth drug use has had an impressive 24 percent decline," said Madras. "The most significant response to a positive test is to get assistance."

The U.S Department of Education has given this same grant to about 500 other schools in 49 states. This is the first time it has been given to a Colorado program. It is a three-year grant with plans that the schools can fund the drug testing themselves after the grant expires. The testing is also to be used with an aggressive anti-drug campaign and with help from parents.

Chavez says his school needs this type of program.

"I believe it's a very good way to spend, particularly for our population," said Chavez. "These kids eventually, if they don't get an education, they end up incarcerated."