Notice any missing items in your school’s restrooms or classrooms? TikTok has been the birthplace of many trends, most of which are harmless, however the “devious lick” trend has taken a negative turn which is affecting high schools around the nation. 

Educators and administrators at Buena have already shown signs of frustration with the trend known as “devious licks” by sending out emails to staff and parents, containing information about the social media trend that encourages destruction of school property. The trend has TikTok challenging students to steal school property and upload it to social media for recognition and a good laugh.

“I have seen many TikTok’s on the trend,” senior Diego Chavez said, “It’s messed up that students are stealing schools property.”  

There is a reason that things such as this become trends, and that is due to the fact that teens around the world can laugh and share content with friends through social media platforms such as TikTok

“I think it’s funny,” Chavez said. “Obviously it’s messed up though, and shouldn’t really be happening.”

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“When this happens, you’re spending money, time, and resources to fix it and replace it. That takes away time, money, and resources from you guys.”

— assistant principal Tiffany Dyer

With Buena not being hit hard by the trend, it does not mean it was not hit at all.

“Part of the trend was destroying bathrooms, and we did have that,” assistant principal Tiffany Dyer said. “ Not actually damaging anything, but making it so our custodians have to work extra hard.” 

Around the country, students have stolen whole sinks, and in extreme cases, whole urinals. Whereas at Buena, only toiletries have been stolen.

 “Not big items,” Assistant principal Scott McNutt said, “but toilet paper, paper towels, soap, things like that.” 

Punishment for vandalism and destruction of school property varies among schools but can include consequences such as expulsion, to criminal charges when warranted. Some schools have even put out cash incentives for turning in their peers who have committed a “devious lick”.  

According to Dyer suspension and “potential pushing towards expulsion” would be a consequence of stealing or vandalizing school property. 

Students’ opinions on what punishment should be for the trend, are seen differently than administration and staff.  

“I think students should just have to give it back,” Chavez said. “Clearly it’s against the law, but it started as a joke.”

There is no point for this trend to be affecting schools, the only goal that is able to be achieved is popularity on social media.

 “When this happens, you’re spending money, time, and resources to fix it and replace it,” Dyer said. “That takes away time, money, and resources from you guys.”

There has been a new strand of dare, coming off of this trend called the “slap a teacher challenge” where students are challenged to record and upload a video of themselves slapping a teacher. In response to this trend, California Teachers Association President E. Toby Boyd published a press release acknowledging that “slapping a teacher, regardless of whether it results in injury, is assault and battery, and is completely unacceptable.”

According to Dyer there have been no instances of this taken place at Buena .“Thankfully we have good kids at Buena, we really do,” Dyer said. “I take that to be a result of pride in our school.”