Corpus Christi schools to cover fentanyl abuse prevention in October
Corpus Christi ISD students will receive anti-drug education on the dangers of fentanyl during Fentanyl Poisoning Awareness Month in October.
The district’s Student Health Advisory Council approved Operation Prevention, a free curriculum provided by the U.S. Department of Justice Drug Enforcement Administration and Discovery Education, during a meeting Thursday afternoon in accordance with new state requirements.
The council, tasked with ensuring community values are reflected in health education, is made up of parents and community members.
The state launched a “One Pill Kills” campaign earlier this year. In the spring, the Texas Legislature passed a law requiring Texas public schools to give fentanyl and drug abuse prevention education in grades six through 12.
House Bill 3908 is called Tucker’s Law for 19-year-old Tucker Roe who died after taking a fentanyl-laced pill that he thought was Percocet.
Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that is 50 times stronger than heroin and 100 times stronger than morphine, according to Texas Health and Human Services. An average of five Texans die every day from fentanyl poisoning.
CCISD coordinator for guidance and counseling Courtney Rios told the CCISD council that the approved curriculum, Operation Prevention, is designed to inspire life-changing conversation and to equip students with the skills they need to avoid substance misuse.
The program includes age-appropriate content for grades three through 12 in English and Spanish.
It is a digital program, which includes activities and virtual field trips.
One self-paced module aimed at middle and high school includes real teens sharing firsthand experiences on the negative impacts of opioid misuse. At the elementary level, lessons focus on the importance of using medications responsibly.
“We do believe drug education starting in third grade is appropriate, but it’s more along the lines of respecting medication, prescribed and unprescribed, and the dangers of those,” Rios said.
Also included is a parent toolkit, including information on the warning signs of opioid misuse.
Rios said the district plans to select one of the available lessons to share with students in October in health and physical education classes. The lessons will be led by counselors in collaboration with school nurses.
Other lessons might also be covered by the counseling department over the course of the year.
The council also approved a “Too Good For Drugs” program that focuses on the dangers of drug abuse more generally beyond opioids. The activity-based curriculum will be taught by social workers in small groups of students and shared in health and physical education classes.
For younger ages, the lessons begin with a focus on making healthy choices, resisting peer pressure, building positive friendships, communicating effectively and developing self-efficacy.
“It is a universal K-12 prevention education program designed to mitigate the risk factors and enhance protective factors related to alcohol, tobacco, THC, vaping and other drugs, like prescriptions drugs, over the counter drugs and street drugs,” CCISD Coordinator for Mental Health Services Maria Iyescas said.
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This article originally appeared on Corpus Christi Caller Times: Corpus Christi schools to cover fentanyl abuse prevention in October
