TUSD to hire health workers to tackle students' substance misuse

Tucson Unified School District will use money from a legal settlement to create preventative and educational programming on substance misuse, including hiring a program manager, a program coordinator and five community health workers.

The class-action settlement with tobacco giants JUUL Labs and Altria Group came in a lawsuit over the negative effects on schools from the marketing of vaping products to students.

TUSD’s share is $900,000 annually over eight years, for a total of $7.2 million. The district Governing Board agreed unanimously Tuesday night that it should be spent on the efforts to prevent substance misuse.

Community health workers will be integral to the plan. They “are frontline healthcare professionals who build trusting relationships with the community, serve as liaisons and intermediaries between health and social services, facilitate access to services, and improve the overall quality and cultural competence of service delivery,” states a TUSD task force’s recommendation presented to the board.

The task force also recommended the district develop a standardized curriculum for training and developing its community health workers, along with voluntary standards for their certification. The Pima County Health Department will be a partner in these efforts.

Upcoming considerations include early detection screening tools, media campaigns and peer mentorship efforts.

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TUSD board member Dr. Ravi Shah, who is medical director at the Pima County Jail, said he’s seen society fail those struggling with substance misuse, including juveniles. Some are young people within TUSD, he pointed out.

“I see day in and day out how we as a society have failed so many of our individuals and young people in Tucson,” he said.

The district’s new efforts offer hope, Shah said. “This is going to impact all 40,000 (TUSD) students.”

TUSD filed suit in 2019 against e-cigarette company JUUL Labs and Altria Group (affiliated with Philip Morris). The district was one of the first to join the lawsuit, which eventually involved nearly 1,500 U.S. school districts.