April 22, 2019
VAPING
Continued from page 1
ic, the Las Virgenes Unified School Dis-
trict has been aggressive in its efforts to
educate students, parents and staff, while
enforcing rules and regulations on vaping.
Las Virgenes was one of only five
school districts in the state to be awarded
a state grant of $1,075,000 by Califor-
nia Attorney General Xavier Becerra,
funded by Proposition 56, the California
Healthcare, Research and Prevention Tax
Act that passed on Nov. 8, 2016. Prop.
56 increased the cigarette tax by $2 per
pack, with an equivalent increase to other
tobacco products as well. The bulk of the
revenue generated by the new tax was
earmarked for medical purposes. It has
generated as much as $1.4 billion in new
revenue for the state, a portion of which
has been allocated to schools, cities and
law enforcement to reduce the use of vape
and tobacco products among youth.
In January 2018, Las Virgenes was one
of the first school districts in the region to
warn parents about the dangers of vaping
products. In October 2018, Las Virgenes
appointed two new Deans of Student
Safety and Wellness, Marty Freel and
Mona White. The deans have extensive
educational backgrounds and will focus
primarily on educating our students,
parents and staff regarding the dangers of
vaping. These two new full-time positions
will be funded through the Prop. 56 To-
bacco Grant. This grant award has enabled
us to position ourselves as a statewide
leader in curbing the growing vaping trend
among teens nationwide.
The deans work with local law en-
forcement to support safety efforts, help
with early intervention and discipline of
nicotine-related incidents, and promote
restorative approaches to discipline in
an environment of high accountability
and high support. They help us support
students and families in understanding
the dangers of high-risk behaviors such as
vaping and e-cigarettes.
Since being hired in October, they have
spoken to sixth- and 12th-grade students
in 192 classrooms, conducted six parent
trainings, presented to staff and secondary
PFA/C organizations, and held Reality
Parties for more than 200 parents and
community members. The deans have also
offered webinars, podcasts, and presented
materials on social media in order to reach
as wide an audience as possible.
In their presentations, they explain the
dangers of vaping and nicotine addiction,
and show what the various devices look
like and how they are packaged to resem-
ble everyday technology items. The devices
themselves, like the Juul, are small and
easy to conceal, do not require a match or
flame, and do not emit smoke – making
them very easy for students to conceal, and
difficult for teachers or parents to detect.
They even bring in samples of the oils
and juices that are used in the devices so
that parents and staff are familiar with the
deceiving scented flavors.
In their work with the Malibu/Lost
Hills Sheriff ’s Department, the deans
visited all 27 tobacco and vape retail stores
in our district to begin a dialog with them.
They introduced themselves, handed the
store employees fliers, and reminded them
of the law regarding selling to minors.
Our deans have also assisted the Sheriff ’s
Department in approximately 35 sting
operations where they have used under-
age minors, typically ages 14 to 15, and
a plainclothes officer to enter the retail
facility and attempt to buy vaping devices.
During one sting operation, the owner
happened to be operating the cash register
and informed the 14-year-old minor that
he could not sell to her, but suggested that
she find an adult in the store to purchase
for her. The minor turned to the adult
behind her in line, who not only agreed
to buy the vaping device, but alcohol as
well. Both the store owner and the adult
offering illegal assistance were cited.
Our deans are also working with the
community to help promote a healthier
lifestyle for students. They have created
the Breathe Clean 2019 campaign to
ACSA’s Resource Hub offers a plethora of useful information for
school leaders on such issues as student safety, credentialing,
increasing community engagement, deepening student learning,
dealing with crises and much more.
Search the Resource Hub now at content.acsa.org
spread awareness about the dangers of
e-cigarettes, vaping and tobacco products.
Through the campaign, they are working
to empower students to make good choic-
es based on scientific facts and knowledge.
In 2018, we also formed the Commu-
nity 360 Counseling Center, a student
assistance program offering confidential
counseling ser-
vices to support
”The devices
students and
themselves ... are their families. The
small and easy to Counseling Cen-
ter works collab-
conceal, do not
oratively with the
require a match
Malibu/Lost Hills
or flame, and do
Sheriff ’s Depart-
not emit smoke – ment and local
making them very mental health and
easy for students wellness providers.
The Counseling
to conceal, and
Center, which re-
difficult for teach- ceived more than
ers or parents to
60 referrals in the
detect.”
first two weeks,
provides wellness
resources, crisis
support and educational events.
With our Prop. 56 grant funds, we have
also installed vape detection devices in the
restrooms of our secondary schools. The
devices cost approximately $995 each and
require power and internet connections as
they detect the chemicals emitted by vap-
ing devices and then send a text message
to an administrator.
We are finding that students who use
vaping devices develop strong addictions
to those devices, even those who only use
them for a short period of time. Many
students believe that vaping is an issue in
schools, and that many of their friends are
addicted. We have learned through our
work that addiction issues associated with
nicotine are very, very powerful and ex-
tremely important to identify and address
early. Rather than focusing on disciplinary
actions or citing students, education is the
real power for our students and parents —
encouraging them to make healthy choices
throughout life.
EDCAL 5
Paradise
USD will
receive
$1 million
for tech
Paradise Unified School District will
receive nearly $1 million in funds to help
with rebuilding efforts in the wake of the
devastating Camp Fire.
State Superintendent of Public In-
struction Tony Thurmond announced
April 16 that the California Department
of Education has negotiated a payment of
$973,863.36 from the Microsoft Corpo-
ration to Paradise USD. The money is left
over from the Education Technology K-12
Voucher Program, which was established
after a $1.1 billion settlement in 2003
ordering Microsoft to reimburse California
consumers for antitrust violations.
“Butte County educators and their
communities suffered greatly during and
after the Camp Fire. They have also worked
heroically and selflessly toward help-
ing students,” said Thurmond, in a press
release. “I’m proud of the work the CDE
is continuing to do in assisting students
and educators in Paradise and surrounding
communities. This grant will help Paradise
Unified rebuild schools and support its
education infrastructure.”
Fourteen schools were damaged or
destroyed during the Camp Fire in Novem-
ber 2018. The fire temporarily forced the
closure of 99 schools and displaced 31,670
students. On Dec. 3, 2018, 87 schools
reopened with about 28,032 students re-
turning to their school of origin and 2,208
students attending temporary school sites.
Microsoft was ordered in 2003 to
reimburse eligible California consumers
$1.1 billion for antitrust violations. After
the opportunity for reimbursement ended,
a substantial settlement balance remained.
The Superior Court of California ordered
that residual funds be offered to California’s
K-12 schools and districts for educational
technology purchases through the voucher
program.
SAVE THE DATE!
april
25
The Skillful Certificated Evaluator. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Salinas
may
18
Sisterhood Leadership Symposium . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Alhambra
june
SEPTEMBER 25-27, 2019 | ISLAND HOTEL | HUNTINGTON BEACH
23-29 Principals’ Summer Institute. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . UCLA
24-28 Institute for New & Aspiring Principals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . UCLA
september
15-17
19-20
24
25-27
NASS/ACSA Federal Advocacy Conference. . . . . . . . . . Washington, D.C.
Excellence through Equity Conference. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Napa
Educational Excellence: Pathways to Equity Summit . . . . . . . . Alhambra
Women in School Leadership Forum. . . . . . . . . . . . . . Huntington Beach
october
2-4
Personnel Institute. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Long Beach
november
7-9
ACSA Leadership Summit. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . San Francisco
APRIL 2-4, 2020 | SACRAMENTO | www.lead3.org