The schools of Teton County are coming together to address the issue of teen vaping head on. We have taken time throughout the school year to address students to provide information to stop or to never try vaping. According to schools and the Youth Risk Behavior Survey, 29.8% of the 7-8 grade students in Teton County are either vaping or have tried electronic vapor products. (State - 28.2%) Meanwhile 47.6% of Teton County high school students are either vaping or have tried the electronic vapor products. (State - 58.3%) The uptick of vaping usage has created a statewide and nationwide concern. We decided to bring in a national speaker who is an expert on drugs and drug usage to address students, staff, parents, and community members. Please check out the links below to familiarize yourself with Steered Straight and the speaker we are bringing to Teton County.
Video clip of vaping presentation: https://youtu.be/YURG0jm9bJo
For more information visit the Steered Straight website at: http://www.steeredstraight.org
One presentation will take place in Choteau, at which Choteau and Dutton 7-12 grade students will congregate to hear the message. Another afternoon assembly will then take place in Fairfield, where Power and Greenfield students will meet to participate in the message. Here is where Steered Straight takes a different approach; Steered Straight offers a professional development component for staff members, which is offered to all staff in Teton County. It will take place in Fairfield after school hours. Steered Straight also provides a parent/community academy which takes place from 6:00-8:00 in the evening.
\r\nWe have the opportunity to expose over 300 students in Teton County to a national speaker regarding the dangers of vaping. Staff members will be educated on the subject and the most important piece is the parent/community component. This is a new era and adults are naive as to how easy and accessible vaping and spin off drugs are for our youth. It is a serious issue and Teton County can be a leader in the state of Montana in addressing electronic vaping devices.
Fairfield Schools addressed the vaping issue during the month of October. We put an education blitz on 7-12 students to show the harmful effects that are just now coming to the forefront. Staff members showed some short videos (:30 seconds to 2 minutes) every day during first period for five days. Here are the video clips if you wish to view them:
https://abcnews.go.com/GMA/News/video/doctors-teens-lung-failure-due-vaping-65116582
https://newyork.cbslocal.com/2019/09/16/vaping-flavored-ecigarettes-research/
http://newschannel9.com/news/local/erlanger-and-health-department-representatives-on-vaping - This is more of an article now - (We avoided the video immediately following)
https://abcnews.go.com/WNT/video/teens-hospitalized-vaping-continues-pose-dangers-64574300
Please help spread the word and we will try to get as many folks as we can to the parent/community presentation!