Tobacco Use Prevention Education is a new, developing program at Cupertino High School and throughout the Fremont Union High School District to educate students on drug abuse through various events throughout the year.
Organized throughout the country, the development of this program at CHS marks a critical step that educational systems are taking to address the high substance abuse rates among high school students. While much time and effort has been put into its planning, this is the first year of full implementation of activities in FUHSD schools. It is also the first time that coordinators for this organization have been established on all FUHSD campuses, making them accessible to all students.
Grace Cho, who is a senior at Cupertino High School this year, had a substantial impact on the establishment of the program in FUHSD. During her freshman year, she became a member of Santa Clara County’s Peer Advocate Advising Council, which allowed her to promote funding and implementation. In 2022, Cho and fellow PAAC members attended a school board meeting and advocated for the Tier Two Grant that aimed to put the program into full effect. She is now a peer advocate under Mrs. Kuehn’s advisement, along with a handful of other student advocates from the former freshman Health class at Tino.
“Substance addiction is an issue that is everywhere, really, not just in FUHSD,” Cho said. “It can affect anyone, so we all really agreed that having this grant and being able to fund this program is super important to the long-term health of our students.”
This program’s initiative aims to provide students with knowledge on making healthy decisions through tobacco and substance-specific education, skill-building activities and even parental involvement in separate programs. Middle schools may also adopt a preliminary health course, which was implemented at Tino in the past but removed to develop the curriculum. The class would provide further opportunities for students to familiarize themselves and engage in this domains of interest.
Said CHS TUPE advisor Kristi Kuehn, “By bringing TUPE to our campus and educating peer advocates to be voices on campus, we hope to use our evidence-backed knowledge on the harms of cannabis use to [benefit] students [in the] long term.”
The program will host two major events in the 2024-2025 school year. The first event, called Red Ribbon Week, is the nation’s largest and longest-running drug use prevention campaign that aims to encourage communities to take a stand against drug abuse. The second event, TakeDown Tobacco Day, will occur on April 1st at CHS, and will promote healthy decision-making through interactives with fun prizes and trivia. More specific event information will be available closer to the launch date.
Through increased community involvement, the program will be a critical initiative in ensuring and educating students about safety in high schools. To express interest in being a member of TUPE, email Kristi Kuehn at [email protected].
