In 2003 the first electronic cigarette was invented, an invention which has caused lots of controversy on local and national levels. D.C. Everest has problems with vaping and it’s often a struggle to see what the best way to prevent addiction is. I believe the best way to prevent vaping is better education.

   According to the Addiction Prevention Coalition, in 2019 the National Institute of Health surveyed that around 12 percent of high school seniors reported vaping on a daily basis, a staggering number. 

   The numbers seem to get worse, as another study from the National Institute of Health found that of those who vape 13.7 percent don’t actually know what is inside of an e-cigarette, including not being aware of nicotine. Here at D.C.Everest I’d argue we do a good job educating students about a multitude of drugs including nicotine based products.

   I know complimenting the education here seems contradictory to my point, however I’d argue that often our support comes too little too late. Problems with vaping in our schools extend to the D.C. Everest Junior High School, and what I’ve seen is we often simply try to cut off one bad egg instead of trying to teach kids before they become addicted. 

   Something that also has been shown to reduce the rates of vaping is students educating each other. Whether it’s working with other students to better understand possible effects of vaping, or organizing students to set an example, students often have a greater impact on other students than teachers do, at least short term.

   I’m not going to make any more large proposals because I know for administrators that dealing with these issues are often difficult, and no one will ever find a system that is perfect. I just hope that one day we will get a system that does better at combating vaping in our school.