North Hills School District would like to share some
information with our families on the dangers of vaping in an effort to address
a serious issue that is affecting students not only in our area but nationwide.
In December, the U.S. Surgeon General noted the use of vaping devices by school-age students as a national epidemic. Vaping devices and their use are commonly referred to as "juuls, juuling, vapes, vaping, e-cigarettes and dab pens." Each of these dangerous devices has been seen in our schools, and they are a violation of North Hills School District policies.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Food and Drug Administration’s National Youth Tobacco Survey, the percentage of high school-age students reporting past 30-day use of vaping devices rose by more than 75 percent between 2017 and 2018. Use among middle school-age students also increased nearly 50 percent, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Manufacturers have chosen to market vaping devices directly to our school-age students at elementary, middle school and high school levels. As a district, we want our families to understand that these devices are not "safe alternatives" to smoking. The majority of these devices utilize large quantities of nicotine, which as you know is a highly addictive drug. Beyond nicotine, “dab pens" can be used to inhale marijuana oils and wax, and most vaping devices can be used to inhale any crushed pills, powdered drugs and marijuana oils.
The district’s School Counseling Department and School Police Department have partnered together to create an informational video which shows some of these devices and information about vaping. As law enforcement officers and counselors, we have directly witnessed the destruction that can be caused by addiction. Please take a moment to watch our video and discuss this subject with your student.
Please click here to view the video. Please scroll down to see a photo gallery of images of these devices.
We will continue our conversation on this topic during an
upcoming Evening Guidance Series session on March 18 at 6 p.m. in the middle
school LGI room. The session will include informational presentations on the
dangers of vaping as well as opioid use. More information about the session
will be shared as we get closer to the event.
If you have any questions or would like further information
about this subject, feel free to contact either of us at the email addresses
listed below. We would be happy to share
any information we have available to assist you with the safety of your
children.
Sincerely,
Nicole Weber, K-12 School Counseling Curriculum Leader/Grades 9 & 10 (Lip-Z) School Counselor
[email protected]
Dean C. Lawrence, Chief School Police Officer
[email protected]