How to Prevent Vaping in Schools

As the rate of conventional cigarette use among youth declines, their use of electronic cigarettes/vaping devices grows. According to the Centers for Disease Control’s (CDC) Youth Risk Behavior Survey, from 2015 to 2021 the daily use of vape devices among high school students increased from 2.0% to 5.0%. A report from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the CDC revealed that in 2022, approximately 2.55 million middle and high school students reported using vape products in the past 30 days.

A primary concern for adolescents who vape is nicotine exposure and the potential for nicotine addiction. Nicotine exposure has been linked to deficits in attention and cognition and mood disorders. The younger the age of exposure to nicotine, the greater the effect.

The purpose of this article is to promote awareness of student vape use and to share strategies for how to prevent student vaping in schools, with a focus on how to stop vaping in school bathrooms.

How Vape Devices Work

Vape products are battery powered devices that are used to inhale nicotine and other substances. The first vaping products, e-cigarettes, were marketed as an alternative to traditional tobacco products. The use of vape devices by youth has no connection to quitting smoking. In fact, young people who vape are more likely to smoke regular cigarettes.

Vape products vary in design and appearance. Some devices can be customized to deliver drugs other than nicotine, such as cannabis/tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) or hash oil. Lawrence Fernandez, Gang Intervention Specialist at Madera Unified School District, shares,

“these THC pens, the concentration is so high now, it’s wreaking havoc on our student body. And I believe it’s highly addictive, because we see kids, so many of them that are smoking before they come to school, during school, and after school.”

Vaping in Schools

Schools across the nation are working to prevent vaping. This has been a challenge. There are many ways that students hide their vaping — to the extent of vaping undetected in classrooms.

Some vape products are designed to look like everyday objects, making them difficult to identify. There are vape devices disguised as pens, highlighters, a computer mouse, mobile phones, car fobs, remote controls, asthma inhalers, phone cases and smart watches. There are also smokeless vaping devices.

There are plenty of videos online that teach teens how to conceal their vaping — known as stealth vaping.

How to Prevent Vaping in Schools

Schools play a crucial role in protecting adolescents from the dangers of nicotine and vaping. Effective prevention programs and district policies can help address risk factors and educate students, staff, and parents about the risks and consequences of vaping.

Prevention Programs for Vaping in Schools

Schools play a critical role in protecting adolescents from the harms of nicotine and vaping. Most nicotine users begin to use nicotine products before the age of 18. Therefore, the best way to protect young people from the harms of nicotine is to prevent its use.

Prevention efforts should address risk factors for substance use such as early aggression, academic failure and school dropout through strategies such as academic supports, social and emotional learning (SEL) along with interventions delivered through multi-tiered systems of support (MTSS).

Prevention programs should be long-term with repeated interventions (i.e., booster programs). Research shows that the benefits from middle school prevention programs diminish without follow-up programming in high school.

District Policies to Prevent Vaping in Schools

Schools are increasingly implementing and/or revising board policies to prevent vaping in schools. Many policies go beyond prohibition and vaping consequences to include access to smoking/vaping cessation programs and support programs for students who are addicted to nicotine.

Along with board policies, prevention efforts should include evidence-based student programs that educate students on the risks of nicotine and vape products, training staff to recognize vaping, and communicating information to parents and guardians about vape devices, including their use and dangers and the school’s prevention programs/efforts. The CDC emphasizes the importance of parents and school partnerships in protecting youth from the harms of vaping.

There are many prevention programs available that focus on educating students about the dangers of nicotine products and vaping devices.

How to Stop Vaping in School Bathrooms

Some schools are tackling the vaping issue head-on with advanced technology like vape smoke detectors in bathrooms, while others are using innovative methods such as electronic hall passes and anonymous reporting systems to deter and identify vaping activity. Let’s talk about these solutions and how they might work for your schools.

Vape Smoke Detector for Schools

Some schools are taking a technological approach to prevention and installing vape smoke detectors in school bathrooms to alert administrators to vaping activity. Vape smoke detectors for schools are designed to detect the presence of vape aerosol. When sensors detect vape emissions, an alarm is activated to notify school administrators of vaping activity. However, once alerted to vaping activity, it can be a challenge for school administrators to make it to the bathroom in time to catch students in the act of vaping.

Administrators often consult footage from hallway cameras to identify which students were in the bathroom when the detectors were activated. This process takes time and doesn’t provide definitive proof of who was vaping when multiple students are present. Vape detectors are not 100% effective. Unlike smoke, vapor doesn’t rise. Instead, it tends to dissipate and settle. Meaning, vapor emissions can be exhaled down and away from ceiling detectors to avoid detection.

When choosing a vape smoke detector, it is important to consider features such as sensitivity to vape smoke, an effective and reliable alarm system, ease of installation, and compatibility with existing security systems.

Electronic Hall Pass

Some schools utilize electronic hall pass systems. A “smart pass” system allows teachers and administrators to monitor student travel in the building, such as how many times a student has requested a pass, when they left a classroom, the intended destination, and their return to class. This information can be used to identify which students were in the bathroom when detectors were activated.

With accurate, real-time student attendance and location information, staff can account for all students and easily identify trends related to student vaping activity.

Anonymous Reporting Systems

Another idea is to implement anonymous reporting systems to report student vaping at school. Anonymous tip lines can be a powerful tool in curbing vaping in school bathrooms. By allowing students to report incidents without fear of retaliation, schools can quickly address and prevent vaping, creating a safer and healthier environment for all students.

State Laws

Many states have enacted laws to combat the use of vape products at schools. Some state laws mandate consequences for students caught vaping in schools. For example, Texas House Bill 114 mandates that students found with vapes must be placed in an alternative school setting or an alternative education program. The law requires the involvement of parents, administrators, and students in the disciplinary process and offers a support system for affected students.

With an increasing number of students reporting vape use, schools must take proactive steps to address this growing concern. By implementing comprehensive prevention programs, revising district policies, utilizing technology like vape smoke detectors, and adopting innovative approaches such as electronic hall passes and anonymous reporting systems, schools can create a safer, healthier environment for all students. Protecting adolescents from the harms of nicotine and vaping requires a collective effort, and it starts with awareness and action at the school level.