Most teachers and administrators surveyed reported that their school had a general e-cigarette policy (82.9%), although only 43.4% had a policy that mentions JUUL, by far the most popular e-cigarette at more than three-quarters market ownership.
The design and characteristics of JUUL, which looks like a USB flash drive and produces no strong odor, makes it easy for students to use and disguise the device at school. Teachers and administrators say these discreet features present barriers to enforcing school e-cigarette policies.
Respondents said the three most common barriers were the discreet appearance of the devices (65.6%), difficulty pinpointing where the vapor scent was coming from (46.1%) and that e-cigarettes are addictive (25.8%). Other barriers included the lack of clarity about the policy and how it should be enforced, and lack of support from parents.
Preventing e-cigarette and JUUL use in school environments is important because “research suggests that friends serve as the main source by which adolescents acquire e-cigarettes,” researchers noted. In fact, a 2018 report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the FDA found that, among middle and high school students who used e-cigarettes in 2016, the top reason was because a friend or family member used them.
“Schools present a critical opportunity to create an environment where youth reject tobacco and e-cigarettes,” researchers wrote, and “school staff are key influencers in the social and ecological environments of young people and have a unique ability to monitor and influence student behavior.”
Another new Truth Initiative study measuring parent awareness of JUUL found that more than one-third of parents — 35.9% — of middle and high school students had no awareness of JUUL.