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Officials warn of rising vaping incidents in Pender County schools; law-enforcement flags illicit cartridges
Summary
District staff reported about 68 vaping incidents at high schools and 20 at middle schools this year; school and law-enforcement officials told the April 23 joint meeting that some cartridges may contain illicit substances and urged increased detection and community education.
School leaders and law enforcement told the joint meeting on April 23 that vaping remains a recurring problem in Pender County schools and flagged the public-safety implications.
Kevin Taylor, who oversees student-support services, said staff documented roughly 68 high-school vaping incidents this year, about 20 incidents at the middle-school level and a single elementary case. He described disciplinary and education steps the district is using, including the Catch My Breath curriculum shown to fifth- and eighth-grade students and assigned as part of discipline interventions.
Chief Spivey and other law-enforcement participants warned that some vape cartridges circulating among students contain illicit substances and urged schools to engage SROs (school resource officers), provide intelligence to narcotics units, and pursue investigations into sources. At the meeting, a law-enforcement speaker cautioned that certain opioids such as fentanyl can be placed into cartridges and posed a lethal risk if students inhale them.
Board members asked about previously approved vape-detection sensors; staff said an ESSER-era approval exists but committed to check procurement records and report back on whether sensors were purchased and deployed. Presenters emphasized prevention, education and law-enforcement cooperation as the next steps.
