By MIKE COURSON
Great Bend Post
Smoking in the boys' room is not really a thing in 2023. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported a four-percent decrease in cigarette smoking among middle school students since 2011, and a 16-percent decrease among high school students in that span. A recent CDC study, however, showed 2.55 million middle and high school students reported vaping in the past 30 days. At Monday's board meeting, USD 428 Assistant Superintendent John Popp said district staff is combating that problem with a new task force.
"We've heard from principals at all levels that vaping is an increasing problem in our schools," he said. "Not just in our schools, but all schools around the state and really around the nation. It may surprise you to know you have caught vapers in the elementary schools, and students who brought vapes to elementary schools. It's not a middle school-high school problem, it is a district problem."
The task force will include principals from all levels in the district, and members from Juvenile Services, the Barton County Health Department, and the Great Bend Police Department. One part of the task force will look at detecting vaping in schools, and the other will focus on prevention and education.
"The kids are saying things like, 'You're just puffing in water vapor, so it's not harmful to you,' which is completely false," Popp said. "It is laced with all kinds of chemicals. It is extremely dangerous to the lungs. There's a lot of research out there that one puff off a nicotine vape has as much nicotine as 10 cigarettes. It's incredibly addicting, it's incredibly bad for the kids' health, and it is a real problem that needs to be addressed."
On the detection side, Popp said the district plans to purchase metal-detecting wands for approximately $1,700 apiece. Those can be used to find the metal coil that is used to create the vapor in devices. Popp said other schools had success using the wands when students are suspected of vaping but deny having a device.
"The long-range goal on the detection side is potentially using vape detectors, which look like smoke detectors," Popp said. "They don't do a blaring siren, but they will send a notification to the principal's phone."
Popp said the emphasis would be in school bathrooms as vaping is not a widespread problem in classrooms. He told the board that current district policy is sufficient for any enforcement of vaping-related incidents. Superintendent Khris Thexton said the current policy calls for three days of out-of-school suspension for the first incident, five days for the second, and 10 days for the third.