In Aug. 2022, Archie Williams administration installed vape detectors in every bathroom on the school’s campus. The detectors, which became operational on Sept. 26, 2022, had two goals set by the Archie Williams Administration. They aimed to both discourage and catch students vaping in the bathrooms. 

The vape detectors work by using a sensor that detects steam, perfume, smoke, vape, or THC vape. If the detector senses anything it will send a notification to the phones of the campus assistants. After the campus assistant gets the notification, they follow up by going to the bathroom where the detector was triggered. 

“Sometimes we are able to catch students via the vape detector. But I’ll be honest, a lot of it is just our normal checks and routines, and just walking in on somebody firsthand,” said Archie Williams Vice Principal Nate Severin.

Though students have been caught vaping in the bathrooms, many believe that the detectors have not had a large overall impact on bathroom vapers. One of the two goals of the detectors was to deter students from vaping in the bathrooms, and while some students see improvement towards that goal, many students still report seeing this kind of activity in the bathrooms. 

“I’m sure that some students don’t care about the vape detectors, and still continue to [vape],” said sophomore Joey Griffin.

Other students believe that last year’s installment of the detectors have deterred students from vaping in the bathroom specifically, but have had little impact on vaping in general at Archie Williams. Ben Gross, a sophomore at Archie Williams, thinks that the detectors have just driven students to vape in different areas other than in the bathroom.

“I think the vape detectors have stopped students from vaping in the bathroom [specifically], but I feel like this just encourages students to find alternative locations to vape,” Ben said.

One of the commonalities that admin and students share when discussing bathroom vapers is that they don’t want peers to be vaping in the bathrooms. Some students feel out of place when they walk into the bathroom and see others vaping. 

“[Bathroom vapers] make me feel a little uncomfortable when I use the restroom. Because I feel like restrooms should be used for going to the bathroom and not for doing illegal activities,” Ben said.

Students have adapted to the detectors and continue to vape during school hours. Because of the adaptation of bathroom vapers, students are questioning if the vape alarms really solved the issue.