High schooler in Hillsboro crafts legislation to prevent high school vaping

Yahoo

26-02-2025

Shaayan Sinha, a student at Glencoe High School in Hillsboro, is behind legislation to install vaping detection devices in larger schools. (Photo courtesy of Shaayan Sinha)
Shaayan Sinha, a student at Glencoe High School in Hillsboro, had a problem at school.
Not with classes or anything like that: Rather, he said, it was that every time he entered a restroom at the school, 'I was greeted with a thick cloud of vapor' from students who were vaping in violation of school policy.
'It gave me anxiety and fear even to even go to the bathroom,' he said.
Most of us probably would have just held our noses and gone about our business. But Sinha wanted to do something to curb vaping on school property.
So he turned to legislation.
The 15-year-old sophomore is the driving force behind Senate Bill 544, a one-page proposal that would require high schools with more than 1,500 students to install vaping-detection devices in bathrooms and common areas. He persuaded Sen. Janeen Sollman, D-Hillsboro, to sponsor the bill and is lobbying other lawmakers for their support.
Some have met with Sinha and signaled their backing. Others have shrugged off requests to meet. Still others have been – well, let's just say, less supportive.
'I've definitely faced some adversity,' he said.
But he said he's thankful even for the difficult conversations.
'I've learned a lot about the Oregon Legislature and how it works, so I'm grateful for that,' he said.
The bill has been referred to the Senate Education Committee, but it has not been scheduled for a hearing.
Sinha began his work by gathering data about the increasing popularity of electronic cigarettes among youth. The more he learned, the more alarmed he became.
In 2019, for example, the Oregon Health Authority estimated that one in four 11th graders in the state was using a vaping product. Youth use of e-cigarettes grew 80% between 2017 and 2019, the health authority said. State health officials have warned that vaping can lead to addiction, citing a 2019 study that found that youth who vape are three times more likely to start smoking cigarettes.
Vaping, just like smoking regular cigarettes, isn't allowed in schools or other public buildings. But the vapor from the e-cigarettes can be hard to detect without specialized equipment, so students are able to use the devices in restrooms and other areas without much fear of being caught.
Sinha shared his findings with anyone who would listen — students, teachers, administrators, school board trustees, city councilors. Eventually, he met in a coffee shop with Sollman, whose district includes Glencoe High School.
Sollman said Sinha initially wanted her to write a bill mandating the vaping detectors in large Oregon high schools.
Sollman was alarmed by Sinha's information about vaping. But she had a counteroffer for the 15 year old: Why not pitch a bill to lawmakers yourself? She said it was an opportunity for a student to learn the legislative process from the inside.
Working with members of Sollman's staff, Sinha wrote a problem statement and a proposed solution that the legislative counsel's office used to draft the bill. He created a one-page sheet about the proposal to share with lawmakers. And he's been working to get a few minutes with as many lawmakers as possible.
The bill has been assigned to the Senate Education Committee. It has not yet been scheduled for a hearing. If it gets a hearing — and he knows that many bills do not — Sinha plans to testify on its behalf.
Sinha understands some of the reasons for potential opposition: Since the bill doesn't identify a funding source for the detectors, which can cost $1,000 to $1,500 each, schools could consider it an unfunded mandate.
That's part of the reason why the bill applies only to high schools with 1,500 or more students, Sinha said. The bill would affect only about three dozen high schools in the state, according to Oregon Department of Education enrollment data.
And he said districts might be able to find other sources of money: For example, the Pendleton School District won a $50,000 grant from the Wild Horse Foundation to pay for installing vaping devices in its high school.
Sinha discounted arguments that the bill criminalizes vaping: Rather, he said, it allows schools to better track violations of their policies, and it specifies that a district's penalties for violations cannot include suspension or expulsion.
Sinha's crash course in legislative affairs could pave the way for a career in politics.
Well, it could — if that were among his career plans.
'I really want to go into the medical field and be a neurosurgeon,' he said. 'One of the reasons that I'm doing this bill is not especially because I'm very interested in political careers. This is an issue that was really prevalent in my community, and I really want to solve it and I really want to make something better for my community.'
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