Not In Our Schools!

Transforming a Vaping Crisis through Cross-Sector Collaboration

Dr. Linda Thompson and Dr. Bonnie Brown presented Drug Free Manatee’s Vaping Task Force at this year’s CADCA Mid-Year Training Institute.

Presentation Synopsis:

When Drug Free Manatee (DFM) began asking community stakeholders about the youth vaping crisis in schools, it became apparent that although everyone believed it was a significant issue, there was no solid plan to systemically address it. There was no consistent application of policies and no clear measurement of outcomes. The coalition brought the stakeholders together and created a Vaping Protocol Task Force, which included school district leaders, the Juvenile Court, School Resource Officers, law enforcement, the State’s Attorney, the County Clerk, Teen Court and prevention and intervention providers. The impact of this team was transformative, resulting in the complete overhaul of the citation system, with a focus on education and diversion. With the support of SAMHSA, DFM provided the schools with vaping test kits, and created a data collection system to accurately measure the trends and outcomes, which will guide sustainable efforts to impact future youth health and safety concerns.