MIAMI (WSVN) - Miami-Dade County Public Schools (M-DCPS) are taking a proactive stance against the growing fentanyl crisis by launching a new Fentanyl Awareness Campaign.
“We are proactive instead of being reactive,” said Mari Tere Rojas, M-DCPS board chair, “and this is the way to do it, starting with an awareness campaign.”
This initiative, aimed at safeguarding the community, is a collaborative effort with organizations like “Fentanyl Fathers” and student-led campaigns. The campaign is designed to educate and inform students and the entire community about the dangers of fentanyl.
Founder of “Fentanyl Fathers” Gregory Swan, who tragically lost his son to fentanyl in 2013, voiced his support for the program.
“[This campaign] stuns us, but most schools are not willing to do this because they want to be in denial that they have a drug problem,” explained Swan. “Well I got news for you, you got a drug problem. It’s called Florida — there’s 7,800 kids dying and just because it hasn’t happened in your district only makes you lucky. Now [M-DCPS] is being responsible and proactive.”
Stella McLaney is also helping through a campaign she and a fellow student launched to keep students away from buying pills on social media.
“If you’re feeling stressed, if your feel like you need a pill, doctors can prescribe that got you,” said McLaney. “Get it from a pharmacy. We want our message to be, if it didn’t come from a pharmacy, it’s not safe.”
School assemblies will be held across the district starting on November 7. Lisa Keeler, with the South Florida Opioid Alliance, said the campaign aims to reach and educate over 50,000 students.
The campaign will include assemblies where students will learn to recognize signs of overdose and how to administer Narcan, a medication that can save lives by reversing the effects of overdose. They will also be educated about the signs of fake pills, a crucial aspect in staying safe in today’s environment.
Furthermore, the students will have the opportunity to hear from families who have tragically lost loved ones to fentanyl overdoses. The goal is to empower students with the information and tools they need to protect themselves and their peers.
All 342 Miami-Dade schools have two cans of Narcan readily available with school resource officers, and to date, there have been no fentanyl overdoses within Miami-Dade schools.
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