Opioid addiction has been an issue for as long as many of us can remember. With this comes the tragic truths of opioid overdoses. However, these overdoses don’t have to be fatal. Narcan is a medication which can quickly reverse the effects of an opioid overdose. Until recently, it was not allowed on the DHS campus by the school district. For over a year, a push has been made by several DHS students to allow narcan on school campuses. We caught up with one of them in the wake of the district’s policy change.

When asked why he was first inspired to push for narcan to be allowed on campus, Leo Stritikus stated, “Last year, as many people know our community had an overdose event that killed a high schooler.” He went on to say, “I remember what that did to our community and the hurt that it caused, so I was motivated to try to find a way to make sure that would never happen again.” Stritikus has been leading the appeal to the district to allow narcan for over a year.

As many people know, trying to get a district policy change has been very tough for students. When asked to comment on his experience, Stritikus states, “It was a difficult process, you know. It took more than a year to get a policy change and there were valid back and forths. It was an uphill battle, definitely, but it was one worth fighting so we stuck with it.”

Now that narcan is approved to be carried on campus, the next steps are in the hands of the students. But how do DHS students feel about the decision to allow narcan?

When asked about how she felt about the decision, DHS freshman Kara O’Donnel stated, “I think it is a really good idea to allow narcan to be carried on school grounds. Obviously it would be great if we didn’t have to worry about stuff like that but it’s good to know it’s an option.”

When asked the same question, another DHS student who prefers to remain anonymous stated, “I am very excited to see narcan allowed on school campus. I am very interested in learning about the possible drug repercussions that could happen because of this. It’s important that students who want to carry narcan on campus receive the proper training on how to use narcan.”

Another student, Maddie Dubois commented, “While I think it’s a step in a positive direction, how are people going to get kids to keep narcan on them? I’m less worried about kids overdosing at school and more worried about kids overdosing at parties. The school nurse has Narcan and I believe that each teacher should keep it in their classroom and there should be one in bathrooms because kids will vape and do drugs in the bathroom.” Dubois went on to state, “I think the school should host a narcan training and find sponsors to pass out narcan to students and educate them on why you should have it.”

Overall, the reaction is positive but highlights that we still have a ways to go in creating an effective system to use narcan.