Vaping Is 'Everywhere' in Schools-Sparking a Bathroom Surveillance Boom

"The freshman from Phoenix had long struggled with depression and would cut her arms to feel something. Anything. The first drag from a friend's vape several years ago offered the shy teenager a new way to escape. She quit cutting but got hooked on nicotine. Her sadness got harder to carry after her uncle died, and she felt she couldn't turn to her grieving parents for comfort. Bumming fruity vapes at school became part of her routine."

"Like students across the country, Gutierrez got dragged into a nicotine-fueled war between vape manufacturers-including a company that leveraged online advertisements on the websites of Nickelodeon and Cartoon Network to hook kids on e-cigarettes-and educators, who've turned to digital surveillance tools and discipline to crack down on the youngest users. Gutierrez was suspended for a week after she was nabbed vaping in a crowded school bathroom during her lunch hour."

"An in-depth investigation by The 74 reveals how nicotine-addicted teens, who often begin vaping under social pressure or, like Gutierrez, to cope with hardship, are routinely kicked out of school instead of receiving meaningful services that could steer them away from tobacco and help them break free of their vape pens. Candid interviews with a dozen high schoolers and recent graduates from across the country reveal how vaping has become ubiquitous in schools. The battery-powered nicotine sticks are more than an addiction: They define stud"

Many teenagers begin vaping to cope with depression, grief, social pressure, or as a replacement for self-harm, with nicotine use becoming routine at school. Vape manufacturers targeted youth through online advertisements on children’s websites, contributing to initiation. Schools are installing vape-detection technology, adopting digital surveillance tools, and enforcing punitive discipline, including suspensions, to deter student use. Students frequently receive exclusionary punishments instead of meaningful services or treatment that could address addiction and underlying mental-health needs. Personal accounts describe crowded bathroom vaping, peer-supplied flavored devices, and surveillance-driven responses that prioritize detection and punishment over prevention and support.

Read at WIRED