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A staggering statistic shows that one in six high schoolers in Lee County report blacking out at some point in their life, and now the school district is sounding the alarm and asking parents to get involved to stop the drinking problem. A statewide survey shows students in Lee County are way above state average for the number of kids that have used alcohol and have blacked out— a problem that shocked parents when they heard it. “If I had a child that was that young drinking I’d probably take him to the hospitals and show him the effects of it,” said Allen Simpkins. Another parent, Ronnie Lee, says it’s on the parents to make sure their teens don’t have access to the alcohol. “I think they need to secure where their alcohol is being stored, they can’t put it in a place kids don’t have access to it,” Lee said. The survey also found that seventy five percent of Lee County High School students got their alcohol from their home or from a friend’s home. Health experts say underage drinkers tend to binge a lot more and it’s something their bodies just can’t handle. Pediatricians told WINK News that not only is it dangerous in the moment, but could have long term effects as well. “They don’t realize when they drink it affects their brain cells…they still have developing brains they’re still engaging in learning memory and it is affected by alcohol consumption even if it’s on the weekends separated by learning,” said Dr. Annette St. Pierre of Mackoul Pediatrics. The district says with alcohol use, students grades drop, they are more absent from class, and other opportunities are reduced. This has led the district to schedule a series of seminars, with the first seminar starting on Tuesday at Cape Coral High School. If you can’t make the event tonight, there will be more seminars at the following location and times: Tuesday, April 9th 6:00pm to 7:00pm Cape Coral High School 2300 Santa Barbara Blvd. Cape Coral, FL 33991 Tuesday, April 23rd 6:00pm to 7:00pm South Fort Myers High School 14020 Plantation Rd. Fort Myers, FL 33912 Monday, May 13th 6:00pm to 7:00pm Varsity Lakes Middle School 801 Gunnery Rd. North Lehigh Acres, FL 33971 Lee County addresses student alcohol consumption with seminar