Dozens of schools in metro Atlanta will be equipped with vape detectors this year, as part of a push to keep students from using electronic smoking devices. But far more schools have no plans to install the sensors.
The DeKalb County School District is spending $1.6 million to put the sensors, which resemble smoke detectors, in its high schools. Marietta City Schools will spend up to $60,000 to put the sensors in three schools.
But spokespeople for Atlanta Public Schools and the Cherokee, Cobb, Fulton and Gwinnett school districts said they do not use the sensors and do not plan to. Vape sensors have been used in middle and high schools in Douglas County for the past three years.
“We can confirm Fulton County Schools does not have vape detectors installed in our schools, and we have no current plans to add them,” read one statement to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “We utilize student and staff educational efforts to address the issue.”
The divide in metro Atlanta encapsulates the debate in the field: Can you deter someone from doing something addictive? Is punishment or education the fix?
Credit: Photo courtesy Motorola Solutions
Credit: Photo courtesy Motorola Solutions
Vaping has exploded in popularity in recent years. E-cigarettes are the most commonly used tobacco product among middle and high school students in the United States. In 2024, 1.63 million kids used e-cigarettes, according to federal data. In Georgia, vaping is illegal for anyone under the age of 21.
In Georgia, 6,100 students were disciplined for using electronic smoking devices in 2019-2020, the first year districts were required to track the number. In 2023-2024, the number topped 20,000 — and that’s just the students who were caught.
The American Lung Association does not support schools using vaping detectors because they often lead to a punitive response.
“We understand the notion to do something, and we understand that vape detectors could have an appeal. ... However, there’s really no credible evidence base to suggest they are efficacious in preventing youth vaping,” said Caroline Joyce, the executive director of Parents Against Vaping. “Nicotine use is an addiction.”
In many metro Atlanta schools, students who are caught vaping could be suspended for up to 10 days. In Cherokee County, students caught vaping could be transferred to an alternative school or face expulsion. But officials in DeKalb County say punishment isn’t the goal. Superintendent Devon Horton likened it to the rise in children smoking cigarettes.
“It wasn’t so serious, and before you know it, kids were smoking in the bathrooms, smoking all over the school,” he said at an August school board meeting. “Our goal is not about suspending and booking children. It’s really about identifying and being able to get that under control.”
Credit: Miguel Martinez
Credit: Miguel Martinez
The state’s third-largest school district is paying for the vape sensors with funds from a 2022 settlement with e-cigarette manufacturer Juul. The one-time allocation must be used for anti-vaping purposes.
Experts recommend partnering with health departments to teach students about the dangers of using electronic smoking devices. Georgia law requires public schools to teach about the dangers of vaping. Some districts take it a step further. Gwinnett County offers workshops for parents on the subject, for example. And students in DeKalb who are caught using the devices must complete an online smoking prevention course.
Horton said the debate over vape detectors may be moot in the next few years.
“It’s going to be a matter of time — these are going to soon be required,” he said. “I can almost guarantee you that.”
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