As students across the country are going back into the classroom schools are putting in more protections to keep kids from overdosing on campus.
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00:00 Welcome back everyone. As students across the country are going back into the classroom,
00:05 schools are putting in more protection to keep kids from overdosing on campuses. With
00:10 more on this, we turn to Scripps News reporter Dan Grossman.
00:14 The nation's overdose epidemic has worked its way into our schools as kids are now overdosed
00:21 seen on or around campus and even at some school-sanctioned events. It's become such
00:26 an issue that the country's second largest school district, Los Angeles, is letting students
00:32 carry Narcan. In May, two teens were found dead in a Tennessee high school parking lot.
00:37 In March, a group of Maryland students having lunch off campus saved another teen's life
00:42 because they had Narcan with them. And in February, two people in Texas were hit with
00:47 federal charges linked to 10 youth overdoses within just six months.
00:52 School and community leaders are now on the front lines of creating protocols as well
00:56 as resources to help save students' lives. I'm Kara Kenney with Scripps News Indianapolis.
01:03 Schools across Indiana are stocking Narcan. 911 calls reveal that school employees are
01:08 now on the front lines in administering the medication.
01:12 "Pendex County 911. We have a student that says she took a bunch of pills. I have Narcan
01:18 on hand. Hold the tip of the nozzle and either nostril so your fingers touch the bottom of
01:23 her nose. Okay. I'm going to give you something up your nose, okay? It's a little nasal spray."
01:29 In another Indiana county, emergency personnel have been dispatched to schools more than
01:34 a hundred times for suspected overdoses over the last year and a half. Non-profits are
01:40 giving schools Narcan kits and training staff on how to use it. We found overdoses are also
01:46 happening off school property. That's why a new effort is underway for school employees
01:51 to bring Narcan with them to school events in other districts.
01:55 I'm Adam Rikussen in San Diego where the explosion of dangerous drugs at the border hasn't gone
02:00 unnoticed by school districts in California. At San Diego Unified, one of the largest districts
02:04 in the state, schools are equipped with two doses of Naloxone. Each school also has several
02:09 staff members trained in how to administer it. Law enforcement recently gave out Narcan
02:14 kits to some students and taught them how to administer the drug used to reverse opioid
02:19 overdoses, causing some controversy with parents. Meanwhile, school policies regarding students
02:24 carrying the drug aren't following in line. We asked several school districts across California
02:30 what happens if a student brings the medication on campus. The districts told us they either
02:35 don't have a policy or that students are not allowed to carry Naloxone on campus.
02:41 I'm Leslie Delespore here in Kansas City where school is about to begin and tough conversations
02:45 about fentanyl and how it is impacting the youth in our community are top of mind, especially
02:50 for parents like Libby Davis who know the dangers of fentanyl all too well after losing
02:54 her son Cooper to the drug in August of 2021. But now she is happy to see leaders taking
02:59 action on August 1st in Johnson County. Kansas Congresswoman Cherise Davids and leaders from
03:04 the district in the area sat at the table to discuss not only the dangers, but importantly
03:08 proactive and reactive measures to keep kids and families safe. It's important for everyone
03:14 to know the signs of an overdose. Things like small pupils, loss of consciousness, weak
03:20 or no breathing, discolored and or clammy skin. Along with Narcan, communities across
03:25 the country are seeing an increase in fentanyl test strip usage. Health officials say one
03:30 of the first forms of prevention is to have a conversation with children about drugs and
03:36 risk of overdosing. Dan Grossman, Scripps News.