College Station ISD busts THC vaping with technology; how it works

COLLEGE STATION, Texas (KBTX) - A 17-year-old College Station High School student was arrested last week for bringing a THC vape onto campus and using it in the bathroom. A device used to detect vaping alerted school officials to what was going on.

Just after 1:30 p.m. on Friday, school administrators learned about possible vape use in a school restroom. When the College Station school resource officer (SRO) responded, he found the student in possession of the device and confirmed he had used it on campus.

The student was then taken into custody and booked into the Brazos County Jail. At the time of his arrest, the student was out on an $8,000 bond for a February 5 arrest on the same charge.

Because of incidents like this, College Station ISD and schools across Texas are turning to technology to detect vaping on campus in real time.

In the arrest report, the SRO credited the school’s vape sensors for detecting the activity in the bathroom.

While College Station ISD did not disclose what sensor company it partnered with, companies like Triton Sensors work with schools to install vape detection systems, often placed in restrooms or other areas where cameras are not allowed.

“Our goal is to limit those blind spots and provide our customers with really good situational awareness so we can attack drugs like vaping, vapes, marijuana, cigarettes, THC, etcetera,” Triton cofounder Garrison Parthemore told KBTX.

Triton Sensors pick up changes in air quality, humidity, and sound, and can send an alert within seconds. School staff can then respond immediately, catching students in real time.

“On average, it’s about a 70% reduction in vaping, which we’re very proud of,” boasted Parthemore. “I think it’s great for our customers, especially school staff, because it eliminates any kind of guest work for them, having to randomly check the bathrooms.”

While Bryan ISD said it does not use this technology, student organization Vikings Kicking Out Tobacco (VKOT) said they are advocating for change.

“Most of the time, if a student tells a teacher that a kid is smoking, by the time the teacher investigates or tells somebody, the student is already gone,” VKOT vice president Jonathan Ferrazas said. “Having these smoke detectors would allow for instantaneous response.”

According to reporting from the CDC, more than one in 10 high school students used e-cigarettes in 2024.

“A lot of kids take the bathroom opportunity to take the time to hit their vape and everything,” explained VKOT president Gabriela Garcia.

It is an epidemic that schools across the state and country are battling with more than 1.6 million middle and high school students in the U.S reporting vaping in the past year. However, as vape devices continue to evolve, so do the tools to crack down on them.

“For us, it’s all about protecting private spaces, making places safer,” Parthemore added.

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