Immanuel Lutheran College principal addresses vaping ‘issue’ as cubicle video emerges

A Sunshine Coast private school has installed vape detectors in toilets to identify students experimenting with the dangerous e-cigarettes while a video of students vaping its cubicles has emerged.

Vape detectors have been installed in toilets at an elite Sunshine Coast school in a bid to identify students experimenting with dangerous e-cigarettes.

Immanuel Lutheran College principal Colin Minke called for more government action on the dangerous practice, saying schools had been left with the task of educating students and parents about vaping.

His comments came after a video emerged on social media platform Snapchat which showed students at the college appearing to be smoking an e-cigarette in a cubicle.

The video, taken during Term 1, was shared onto the public story Snapchat setting with its location tagged as Immanuel Lutheran College.

Mr Minke said he was unaware of the video and thus had not taken any action against the students.

However, Mr Minke revealed the vape detectors had been installed in toilets to help identify students experimenting with e-cigarettes and was looking at rolling the detectors out across campus by the end of 2022.

“As part of our integrated approach to education and prohibition, the college has installed vape detectors which assist in the identification of students who may be experimenting,” Mr Minke said.

“While there have been limited cases where these measures have been used, it acts as an effective deterrent for students.”

A screen grab reportedly of a student at the Emmanuel Lutheran College at Mooloolaba vaping. Picture Supplied

Mr Minke said there were challenges in the use of social media platforms like Instagram and TikTok which he said “glamorised” vaping and placed pressure on young people to experiment.

“As with all school communities, there are some young people who are experimenting with vaping, and Immanuel has had some incidents since vaping emerged a few years ago in younger people,” Mr Minke said.

“We have worked diligently with students to educate them on the dangers of vaping and this is integrated in our wellbeing program in the secondary school.

“We also run parent information sessions to educate parents on how to work with their children should they be exposed to vaping in the community.”

E-cigarettes were this week labelled a “public health crisis” in a major three-year analysis, which found that vaping was increasing the risk of addiction, poisoning, seizures, burns and lung injury.

The review, undertaken by experts from the Australian National University on behalf of the federal government, also reported early signs of adverse impacts on vapers’ cardiovascular health including blood pressure, heart rate and lung functioning caused by e-cigarette use.

Despite the review, Education Minister Grace Grace has stood by comments she made in January that vaping “no bigger issue than smoking cigarettes was when she was at school”.

Ms Grace stressed that all Queensland schools had a zero-tolerance policy to vaping and that it was a concern taken seriously.

Queensland Secondary Principals’ Association president Mark Breckenridge said he was unaware of schools using vape detectors in toilets but said they were a major issue.

Mr Breckenridge said unlike traditional cigarettes, the e-cigarettes could be designed to look as innocent as a pen or even a fruit stick.

“Vape suppliers are often quite cunning in designing them and part of the problem is that they’re given names that sound deceptively safe, they certainly don’t call them nicotine sticks,” Mr Breckenridge said.

“One of the challenges for schools is that vapes are far more readily available and unlike cigarette packages, the chemicals are unknown and have long-term effects.”

Mr Breckenridge said most schools were actively taking steps to address the problem of e-cigarettes and the dangers behind them.

“Principals and school staff are really focused on the health and how to address and educate young people,” he said.

A Queensland Teachers Union spokeswoman urged all members of its community to help keep vapes away from students.

“Vaping has become what was in previous generations, the problem of keeping deadly cigarettes out of impressionable students’ hands,” the spokeswoman said.

“Policing such an issue in schools is made that much easier with the strong partnership of parents and caregivers who are the key influencers on student access to vapes and the choices they make.”

The Lung Foundation chief executive Mark Brooke said he was increasingly concerned that vaping was seen by kids and young people as a “normal, safe practice”, with the potential for devastating, long-term health implications.

“Your lungs aren’t designed to inhale anything but clean, fresh air,” Mr Brooke told The Courier-Mail in September.

“Our concern is that vaping becomes the thin edge of the wedge when it comes to normalising smoking.”