The new school year starts today with new opportunities and challenges for our students! With the alarming increases in vaping among youth, this is a great time to remind our kids that vaping products, like Juul, are considered tobacco products. Possession and/or use on school property at any time is a student discipline offense as defined below:
TOBACCO: Student possession or use of tobacco, tobacco product substitutes (e.g., tobacco look-alikes), cigarette look-alikes (e.g., electronic cigarettes), hookahs and hookah look-alikes (e.g. electronic hookahs), vaping devices, or vaping cartridges on school property and at school sponsored events is prohibited. x Elementary School – Level 1-2 x Middle and High School – Level 2
DISCIPLINE LEVELS:
Level 1 Discipline:
- Level 1 discipline is used for minor acts of misconduct which interfere with the good order of school.
- Following appropriate teacher intervention, students may be referred to an administrator.
- Level 1 consequences range from a minimum of an administrative conference to a maximum of five (5) days of In-School Isolation (ISI) for elementary students, or five (5) days of In-School Suspension (ISS) for middle and high school students and may include restitution.
Level 2 Discipline:
- Level 2 discipline offenses are intermediate acts of misconduct.
- Students should be referred to an administrator.
- Level 2 consequences range from a minimum of one (1) day of Out-of-School Suspension (OSS) to a maximum of ten (10) days of Out-of-School Suspension (OSS), and may include restitution.
- Repeated violations of any Level 2 offense may result in that violation being considered a Level 3 or higher offense which may result in long-term suspension/expulsion.
Levels 3, 4, and 5 Discipline:
- Levels 3, 4, and 5 discipline offenses are serious acts of misconduct including, but not limited to, repeated misbehaviors of a similar nature, serious disruptions of the school environment, threats to health, safety, or property and other acts of serious misconduct.
JCDA-R Student Code of Conduct 7/1/19: http://www.cobbk12.org/centraloffice/adminrules/J/JCDA-R.pdf
Key information to share with your student:
- E-cigarettes are not harmless and Juul and other refillable pod-based devices ALWAYS contain high doses of nicotine that can easily addict kids
- Don’t ever take a rip of any device someone else offers you. Many of these devices have ben modified and contain marijuana and other drugs that have caused collapse, seizures and the need for emergency hospitalizations
- Nicotine is highly addictive and harmful to the developing teen brain and can permanently and negatively affect learning, memory, attention and behavior
- Youth Don’t Understand Addiction
- Studies show most youth think they can “quit later”
- They don’t recognize that addiction means that they will
- find it difficult to stop smoking /vaping
- continue using tobacco products longer than they want
- perceive Juul as less harmful and less addictive
If your child is unable to stop vaping, please contact your child’s health care provider,, school counselor, or other trusted professional to discuss ways to help them quit. One resource is the Truth Initiative. Truth Initiative® has expanded its quit-smoking resources to include a first-of-its kind e-cigarette quit program. This innovative and free text message program was created with input from teens, college students and young adults who have attempted to, or successfully, quit e-cigarettes.
To access the new e-cigarette quit program, users can text “QUIT” to (202) 804-9884. Users can also enroll in This is Quitting or BecomeAnEX®, free digital quit programs from Truth Initiative that integrate the text program.