“Do you want a hit?” I was asked, in the bathroom, my first week of middle school. I hadn’t been exposed to vaping before, so I declined out of fear. I began to notice the prominence of vaping on campus and most of my friends were trying it. With all the troubles vaping caused, I decided it wasn’t for me. It was difficult to combat peer pressure, and I wondered how vaping could be so easily accessible to youth. I wished that the pressure to vape didn’t exist for any of us.  

During my freshman year on Zoom, there was a presentation for a group called Evolvement. I joined to be involved in something during the pandemic. Evolvement is a youth-led movement where our mission is to create positive change in New Mexico by decreasing the harmful effects of tobacco and vape products. Four years later, I am the secretary of Evolvement’s leadership team and one of their most active members. 

After being accepted, I learned that the main objective of Evolvement’s campaign, 24/7, was to get the New Mexico Public Education Department (P.E.D) to repeal the existing tobacco policy and replace it with a policy that meets 24/7’s standards. 24/7 fights to keep nicotine and tobacco products out of schools. A policy change like this would hold all New Mexico schools, K-12, accountable for taking action towards keeping nicotine and tobacco products off campus. Over the past four years, I’ve contributed to this mission by presenting to health boards and businesses, speaking with high school principals, participating in community events, and most importantly meeting with New Mexico state legislators at the capital, be it in person or on Zoom.

On October 27, 2023, the New Mexico P.E.D. adopted to repeal the current tobacco policy and replaced it with 24/7’s policy. I am beyond proud to know that I made a difference for the entire state. Hopefully, with this new policy, a student starting middle school can focus on finding their identity rather than a harmful habit.