Vaping Trend becomes a Problem At Wall and throughout the State

By Jack Meyer
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​   The widespread use of electronic smoking devices, sometimes called “vapes” because of the vapor that is released from them, has been an issue at Wall High School and at many others throughout the state this year. Suspension numbers for students caught vaping at school have risen substantially since last year so, naturally, the focus has shifted to educating students about its dangers.
    Vapes typically contain nicotine, but they can also contain other drugs such as marijuana. They come in many different variations, but common models can fit into a pocket and look like a USB memory stick. They are commonly believed to be safer than actual cigarettes, which is why many students and their parents feel that it is OK to use them.
    “I think it starts with the e-cigarettes 10 years ago or so that started to ease into the adolescent age bracket,” said Wall Student Assistance Counselor Mrs. Alysa Fornarotto-Regenye. “I think that parents didn’t realize how it wasn’t a good idea to let their kids use e-cigarettes because the concept behind that with big tobacco was that it keeps kids from using but, in reality, you are training a behavior. You are training your brain to do an action, so it started with those and then it went to the vapes.”
   Mrs. Regenye emphasized that this has not been a problem limited to the High School, but has been present at the majority of high schools across New Jersey. She mentioned she attended a meeting with representatives from many different schools and they all expressed their concerns with how much of a problem vaping has become.
    “I think that with all of the cracking down that the school has already been doing, I feel like it’s not going to be much of a problem later,” said DELTA (Discovering Excellence Through Teen Alliance) Club member senior Allie Lee. The school has furthered teachers’ knowledge  about vapes and suspended students for vaping on school grounds.
    “I feel like there are a lot of misconceptions about how bad vape is,” said sophomore DELTA member Ally Fornino. “People seem to think that it’s not that bad and don’t even realize that it has nicotine in it.”
    The DELTA Club has been trying to think of ways to further educate students about the harmful effects of vaping and will continue to try and make the student body aware of them.