Starting in the 2026-2027 school year, the Northern Humboldt Union High School District plans to renovate each campus bathroom with vending machines for Geek Bars. These machines will be easily accessible to all students and staff.
The installation of vending machines will replace the feminine hygiene dispensers. The decision to remove the hygiene dispensers was an easy one. They were never restocked anyway, and things like toilet paper and wrappers were always stuffed in them.
Frustration from the NOHUM administration regarding vaping in the bathrooms sparked this sudden change. There have been several attempts to stop the vaping epidemic, including vape detectors that sound the alarm in empty bathrooms and outright locking students out of the bathrooms.
“We are just tired of locking the facilities on campus; the students are going to vape regardless of school policy,” one school official said. “We might as well just change our attitudes.”
This new addition to campus sparks a new school policy, with the admin finally giving up. Previously, the district vaping policy stated a complete ban on all vapes and vape-adjacent products. The school will, however, remain a nicotine and marijuana-free campus until the end of the 2025-26 school year.
Following the new installments that will take place over the summer, the new vaping policy reflects a new positive mindset. The bathrooms on campus will remain unlocked throughout the day. The vending machines will remain stocked and checked daily, because that’s what’s really important.
Scheduled vape circles stationed in front of all the stalls during every period are also something to look forward to. These circles require everyone entering the bathrooms to immediately sit down and partake.
The administration faces mixed responses from families and community members. Many parents feel as though this change will help their kids become more social, make them cooler, and help them make more friends; others worry their kids might end up preferring Geek Bars to Elf Bars.
The vending machines will consist of the following popular flavors: Mexico Mango, Blue Razz Ice, and Miami Mint. Many Arcata High students are eagerly awaiting the change the next school year brings.
