Vape detectors aim to deter usage
(Photo by MARY MALONE) An electronic cigarette, right, compared to a pencil sharpener, left, indicates how difficult it can be for teachers to recognize the devices in schools. Clark Fork High School recently implemented vape detectors in the bathrooms to help combat the growing e-cigarette usage at the school.
CLARK FORK — Electronic cigarettes are a growing epidemic among America’s youth, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
A National Youth Tobacco Survey in 2018 indicates more than 3.6 million middle school and high school students across the country use e-cigarettes. While Clark Fork Junior/Senior High School’s vaping problem is minimal compared to some of the larger schools in the region and across the country, it is a growing issue, said CFHS principal Phil Kemink.
“Unfortunately, e-cigarettes finally hit my building this year,” he said. “I felt pretty lucky that we have made it this long.”
Because of the increasing usage among the students, CFHS is the first high school in Idaho to have vape detectors installed in the bathrooms. Kemink was able to purchase the units with a grant from Angels Over Sandpoint, and since the installation on May 7, he has collected a handful of devices, he said.
The Fly Sense unit by Soter Technologies not only has the ability to detect vapor or smoke in the air, it can also detect noise disturbances that could indicate fighting or bullying in the bathroom. While it can detect the elevated sound, it does not record the sounds or violate privacy. When vaping or elevated sound is detected, school officials are notified by text message, email or through the Fly Sense mobile app. According to a 2018 statement by Soter Technologies, Fly Sense was developed in response to the growing health hazard of student vaping in schools. It was also developed because one-in-three students, or 3.2 million each year, are bullied in American schools.
Other principals in the region are waiting to hear from Kemink on how well they work and whether it is worth the money, because the units are not cheap, he said.
One reason e-cigarettes are a problem in school, Kemink said, is because they can look like items typically found in a classroom, such as a pencil sharpener or USB drive. Staff even recognized one of the e-cigarettes that Kemink confiscated, realizing they had seen it during class and dismissed it as a pencil sharpener.
Kemink said the students know the units are in the bathrooms, and while it may not keep the kids from using e-cigarettes, it makes it more difficult for them to do so during school hours. Throughout the year, Kemink said heard from some of the students who regret vaping in the first place, as they want to quit but can’t.
“That’s a horrible thing to hear from 16-, 17-, 18-year-old kids,” Kemink said, adding that it is because of some of those stories that he decided to give the Fly Sense detectors a shot. “There is still that aspect of kids who have them are still getting away with it in a sense, but I can say I have started collecting them — hopefully it does start putting a dent in it.”
Information: sotertechnologies.com
Mary Malone can be reached by email at mmalone@bonnercountydailybee.com and follow her on Twitter @MaryDailyBee.