FARMINGTON -- Except for the month of August, Farmington School Board held at least one student expulsion hearing every month during the 2021-22 school year.
In most of the cases, students were accused of using electronic cigarettes loaded with marijuana or THC (tetrahydrocannabinol). THC is the chemical in marijuana that gives the user a high.
The board held separate hearings for 13 junior high students and nine high school students. All the hearings were closed.
The board voted to expel three students and to allow the other students to participate in the school district's Second Chance program. This program requires students and parents to meet certain expectations. If not, the student then is expelled.
Minutes from the special meetings show that the board held two expulsion hearings on Sept. 20, two hearings on Oct. 4, one hearing on Oct. 18, one hearing on Nov. 22, two hearings on Dec. 13, one hearing on Jan. 24, four hearings on Feb. 7, two hearings on Feb. 28, two hearings on March 28, four hearings on April 25 and one hearing on May 23.
Terri Morris, principal for Farmington Junior High School, said the expulsion hearings for her students were because they were using vapes with marijuana.
"Anytime you have discipline issues, it's a concern to me," Morris said.
She said she came in as the new principal in July with a directive to work on the problem and the school tackled vaping and THC use from an educational perspective. The school sponsored anti-vaping and anti-drug assemblies and pushed out that information to parents.
"We came at it from a teaching standpoint," Morris said.
As one example, the school's nurse sponsored an anti-vaping contest, giving the nurse a "gateway" to talk to the students about vaping, she said.
The school adjusted its policy for vaping. Instead of just being suspended from school for vaping, students had to go to Saturday school and were required to attend education workshops. Those caught with vapes and marijuana had to go before the school board for an expulsion hearing.
"We're seen some of the discipline problems drop significantly," Morris said.
She plans to do another round of programs on anti-vaping and anti-drugs with parents next year so that parents will be able to talk to their children about it. Other plans also are in place to help educate parents and students.
Morris said she is concerned that not enough is being done to protect children from the dangers of vapes.
"You can buy it in gas stations. You can buy it off the internet," she said.
Her goal is that parents will learn about the dangers and help put a stop to it among their children.
"We're dealing with the repercussions of the availability of it," she said. "We want to help parents know what to look for."
Morris said the vape oil itself is highly addictive. She describes vapes as "shocking" and "horrible" and said she believes anything the school can do to help students avoid the practice is valuable.
According to John Hopkins Medicine, e-cigarettes -- also called vapes -- heat nicotine extracted from tobacco along wth flavorings and other chemicals to create an aerosol that the user inhales. Regular tobacco cigarettes have 7,000 chemicals, according to the John Hopkins website, while it's unknown exactly how many chemicals are in e-cigarettes.
Jon Purifoy, Farmington High principal, said the expulsion hearings for his students involved vaping and THC but also other reasons.
"We've had a few but not as many as the junior high," Purifoy said.
Like the junior high, Purifoy said the high school is trying to educate students about vaping and its effects, as well as the effects of alcohol and drugs. Posters and signs are up on the walls telling kids about the dangers, Purifoy said.
"They're fully aware of the issues," Purifoy said. "You can do the best you can but at this age, they think they know it all. We do our very best to work extra hard to get the education out to them."
Farmington Police Department has two school resource officers assigned to the school district. Jimmy Brotherton spends most of his time at the junior high and he said he works hand-in-hand with school officials when it comes to vaping with marijuana.
In some cases, Brotherton said students have been cited for possession of drug paraphernalia for having vapes with marijuana and sent to juvenile court.
When a student is found with a vape, Brotherton does a field test to see if it has THC in it. Most of the ones with THC are called dab pens, he said. Sometimes a vape has the smell of marijuana but not always, Brotherton said.
"Some you can't smell because of the flavor in it," he said.
Brotherton said one of his concerns about e-cigarettes is that they may be laced with other chemicals, such as the opiod drug fentanyl or something else more potent.
Brotherton said he addresses students during their health classes about drugs and distracted driving. The Sheriff's Association last year hosted a parent's night about drugs.
Brotherton just finished his fifth year as a school resource officer and he's seen the use of vapes increase among students. He said he thinks part of the increase is because kids want to experiment or they are pressured by their peers. Others use e-cigarettes because they think they are not as bad as smoking a cigarette, he added.
Then again, Brotherton said, students will use vapes because of the flavors, which include cotton candy, bubble gum, fruity flavors and other candy flavors.
"We just try to provide as much information as we can," Brotherton said.