Promoting Tobacco-Free Schools

Protect student health, create healthy learning environments

“

A tobacco-free school environment protects youth from nicotine addiction and builds a foundation for lifelong well-being. By equipping educators to share the facts, foster supportive conversations, and provide cessation resources, we can help students live tobacco-free futures.

— Craig Wethington, MPH
Whole Child National Advisor, School Climate

Our evidence-based approach helps schools:

Reduce risk of addiction

Help students recognize the dangers of nicotine and avoid lifelong dependencies.

Support mental health

Teach students how to manage stress in healthy ways instead of relying on vapes or other tobacco products.

Build resilience

Equip youth with skills to resist social pressures and make healthy choices that benefit their long-term well-being.

Improve physical health

Support healthy brain development and help students avoid the detrimental effects of nicotine on attention, learning, mood, and impulse control.

Promote academic success

Foster tobacco-free learning environments to improve focus and attendance, contributing to better learning outcomes.

Get Recognized for Promoting Tobacco-Free Schools

Meet these criteria to qualify as one of America’s Healthiest Schools.

1

Our district’s school-based tobacco product education is:

To be eligible for an award, you'll need to be doing this. Learn how >

✅ Nice going! The award application will ask you to provide:

  • Provide the tobacco and vaping prevention educational material or curriculum name(s) used with each grade this school year. (e.g., CATCH My Breath™, Stanford Medicine''s Vape-Free Curriculum, Vaping: Know the Truth, ASPIRE, county or state department of health materials).
  • Describe how many lessons each grade received on tobacco and vaping prevention and whether the lessons provided were standalone or integrated into other instruction such as health education, physical education (PE), science, or English language arts (ELA).
  • Upload at least one (1) tobacco and vaping prevention educational material or lesson plan taught this school year.

2

Our school engages students in implementing and improving the district tobacco-free policy throughout the school year using at least two of the following Monitoring intervention for effectiveness methods:

To be eligible for an award, you'll need to be doing at least two of these.
Find resources to help >

✅ Great job! The award application will ask you to:

  • Select at least two (2) student engagement methods used to implement and improve the district tobacco-free policy this school year that were student-centered and developmentally appropriate.
  • Describe how students led implementation of the district tobacco-free policy with a selected student engagement method.
  • Describe how students improved the district tobacco-free policy with a selected student engagement method.

3

Our school’s referral pathway for students identified as needing tobacco product education and tobacco cessation programs include:

To be eligible for an award, you'll need to be doing all of these.
Find resources to help >

✅ Great job! The award application will ask you to:

  • Describe your school team''s written referral pathway for informing caregivers of tobacco use or vaping incident, making a referral to student support services or a cessation program, and then followed up to ensure services were accessed.
  • For elementary grades describe how qualified school staff used a written referral pathway when a student was identified as needing mental health support, informed caregivers, and followed up to ensure services were accessed.
  • Upload at least one (1) completed referral form sent to a student and caregiver. For schools with a tobacco-free policy violation, the form needs to include a student referral to a school or community-based tobacco cessation program. For schools with no incidents of student tobacco use or vaping, the form needs to include a student referral to school or district support service or a community-based program.
Could you be one of America's Healthiest Schools?

Let’s make your vision a reality!
My team is here to help you become one of America’s Healthiest Schools.

—Naomi, Member Engagement & Support Team

Call 888-543-4584, book a chat, or send an email

Resources to Promote Tobacco-Free Schools

Build Your Referral Pathway

Connect people to resources in a timely, consistent, and equitable way by implementing a clearly defined referral pathway.

CATCH My Breath™

A youth e-cigarette, JUUL, and vape prevention program specific to grades 5-12.

Explore Other Topics

School Health Services
Health Education
Local School Wellness Policy
Social-Emotional Health & Learning
Nutrition & Food Access
Tobacco-Free Schools
Physical Education & Activity
Family & Community Engagement
Staff Well-Being