Vaping detectors installed in Dartmouth High School bathrooms

Long before e-cigarettes rose to popularity in the 2010s, school restrooms have been a classic destination for covert smoking sessions. Now, Dartmouth Public Schools is using some new technology to curb vaping at the high school.

Earlier this March, Dartmouth High School equipped its restrooms with sensors designed specifically to measure the amount of vapor in the air from e-cigarettes. When students vape in the bathrooms, the sensors send a silent alert via an app to administrators who log which bathroom the sensor was triggered in, when the sensor was triggered, and how much vapor was in the air.

Dartmouth School District acquired the sensors through Verkada, a company that designs security systems. At this point, the main purpose behind the sensors is to determine just how much of a problem vaping is at the high school, Principal Ryan Shea said. 

“We really need to know the extent of the problem and then develop a full response to the problem,” Shea said. “Right now, we’re just logging the data.”

The sensors have only been installed at the high school, and there are no plans to install them in any of Dartmouth’s other schools, Superintendent June Saba-Maguire said. The district incorporates lessons in its health classes, beginning in elementary school, that teach the negative health effects and addictiveness of vaping.

The data collected from the sensors will help the district determine if its anti-vaping curriculum is doing its job, Saba-Maguire said.

“Our number one priority is obviously the safety and well-being of our students,” Saba-Maguire said. “Beyond that, we also want to be clear that it’s not OK to vape in school in the bathroom. It’s just not an acceptable behavior.”

If the data reveals that vaping is a widespread problem, it could lead to some changes to the school district’s health education curriculum, said Director of Athletics and Wellness Andrew Crisafulli. 

“Every generation has their challenge with some type of substance,”  Crisafulli said. “Vaping right now is the challenge for this generation.”

Saba-Maguire said students have complained that vaping in restrooms interferes with their going to the restroom. Senior Isaiah Beckwith said he’s learned to avoid those bathrooms where students commonly go to vape. 

“I try to avoid those bathrooms at those specific times to keep from dealing with it,” Beckwith said.

As an avid student-athlete who plays tennis, baseball and basketball, Beckwith said he takes his health seriously and that he doesn’t vape for that reason.

In its handbook, the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association specifically prohibits students from vaping. Students who violate this rule face penalties. The handbook states that first-time violators are suspended from 25% of the games that season.

But the long-term solution to keeping students from vaping lies with educating the students and getting them the help they need to overcome an addiction to e-cigarettes, Shea said.

“There are students that might need more support than we can offer,” Shea said. “Just a detention or suspension isn’t going to deter the students from the behavior. We need to get the medical side on it.”

Depending on what the sensor data reveals, Shea said the school may partner with outside health agencies to get help for students struggling with an addiction to nicotine. Shea said that part of the problem is that e-cigarettes offer an easier, faster, more discreet nicotine hit than traditional cigarettes that leave a lasting odor.

According to Shea, students who are caught vaping are required to complete a “reflective assignment” on the dangers of vaping. The focus is on intervention rather than punishment, Shea said. Dartmouth Public Schools participates in the Catch My Breath program that educates students to help them avoid, resist and overcome addictions to e-cigarettes. 

“My number one concern is with student health,” Shea said. “I feel like the tobacco companies and the vape companies really have taken advantage of younger students.”