Huge Spike In Vaping Among New Trier Freshmen

NORTHFIELD, IL — A significant increase in the number of New Trier High School students using vaporizers is among the most alarming results from a health survey conducted last spring, according to district administrators. In just one year, the percentage of freshman students who reported using an e-cigarette during the prior month quintupled, rising from 6 percent in 2016 to 30 percent in 2018, according to a memo to the board from Assistant Superintendent Tim Hayes.

The district had administered the Youth Risk Behavior Survey every other year since 2002, according to Hayes. Survey results suggest increases in the use of e-cigarette devices, also known as "vapes," could threaten to undo the positive effects of recent reductions in teen smoking. The devices can be used to ingest nicotine, the active chemical in cannabis and other illegal drugs.

Tobacco smoking rates have declined sharply since the survey began, falling from 21 percent to just 5 percent in 2018, Hayes said. Meanwhile, rates of cannabis consumption remained between 20 to 23 percent until 2016, when 28 percent of students reported using marijuana at least once in the past month. Oils containing THC, the psychoactive component of marijuana, can also be heated and inhaled using e-cigarette devices.

"While there are other factors, such as an increasing social acceptance of marijuana use, we believe that this rise in the use of vapes is also partly connected to the rise in the number of students reporting use of marijuana," according to Hayes.

Typically, violations of the district's rules prohibiting the use of tobacco products on school grounds result in several days of detention and a referral to community substance abuse intervention programs, Hayes said.

Administrators will notify the school resource officer assigned to New Trier if any students are found to be in possession of a vaporizer this year, according to Hayes. The officer will determine whether or not there has been a violation of village code in Northfield or Winnetka, which both have ordinances on the books prohibiting the possession of e-cigarette-type devices by minors. The officer may issue a citation resulting in a fine, community service and referral to a peer jury.

"Out hope is that these citations will provide an additional incentive for students to cease using these devices," Hayes said.

The increasing prevalence of vaping is also reflected in the number of students punished for violating the school's prohibition on nicotine or tobacco products. There have been an increasing number of violations in recent year, with a growing proportion involving e-cigarettes. A couple years ago, only about half of violations of the policy at the Winnetka campus involved the devices, but in February administrators reported 96 percent of offenses last year were vaping-related.

More: Vaping On The Rise At New Trier, Board Considers Adding Detectors

District officials hope to host community meetings with local substance abuse prevention groups PEER Services of Evanston and LEAD of Lake Forest to plan township-wide strategies to address a number of health issues including vaping and marijuana use, Hayes said.

Superintendent Paul Sally said he planned to discuss concerns about vaping with superintendents of elementary school districts that feed into New Trier at a Sept. 5 meeting, Pioneer Press reported.

In another disturbing result from the survey, a quarter of students reported being willing to ride in a car driven by someone who had consumed marijuana, according to the memo, and 18 percent said they would ride with someone who had been drinking.