Smoking devices and weapons have made more appearances in schools over the past year.
The rise of weapons and smoking devices, more disciplinary actions are implemented in schools.
Over time, more schools become more strict about carrying smoking devices, considering expulsion for students that are found with them. Punishments start with in-school or out-of-school suspension and end in expulsion.
The Ohio department of health said “TOBACCO USE PROHIBITED: No student is permitted to use tobacco products (including e-cigarettes) at any time, including non-school hours, on all school grounds including in any building or facility, athletic grounds, parking lots or vehicle owned, leased, rented or chartered by {a} School District.”
Westerville North High, within Franklin County, has been affected by the statistics and laws over the past few years.
Matt Holmes, an administrator at Westerville North High School and is in charge of much of the discipline this year. “[For] nicotine vapes, the first offense is going to be probably an in-school suspension and the second one is a couple of in-school suspensions,” Holmes said. “ if you get another one it will probably be an out of school suspension and a parent meeting,”
A sophomore at Westerville North who previously smoked in school said “I used to hide in bathroom stalls, keep my vape in my bra or under my sleeve and take bathroom breaks every period to smoke. Eventually the schools discipline became harsher and I began to quit for the sake of getting caught.”
The administrators are trying to stop the use of smoking devices in school by “being visible and try to make our way to the bathrooms as much as possible,” Holmes said. Although this increases the amount of students caught with smoking devices, many students still proceed to smoke in the bathrooms.
In 2023 Franklin County passed Issue 2, stating that marijuana is allowed to be purchased within the county, but banning artificial flavoring in smoking devices that attracts teens to try to reduce the number of adolescents smoking illegally and obtaining smoking devices.
Although, with the legalization of marijuana for people over the age of 21, more adolescents end up in court after disciplinary actions are taken by schools if mariguana was on school grounds brought by a student.
