ASPIRE (A Smoking Prevention Interactive Experience) is a free online prevention education resource from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. ASPIRE delivers tobacco prevention education to teens and adolescents at a self-directed pace.
While ASPIRE was created over 20 years ago, the program was revised and updated in January 2018 (version 2.0). This update was generously supported by the Hildebrand Foundation.
In this latest version, students travel through interactive modules and complete quizzes. They will hear testimonials from former smokers, health care professionals and cancer survivors. The ASPIRE curriculum is available in English and Spanish and aligns with both national education standards and Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS).
ASPIRE is a tobacco prevention program. It was not designed to be used as an alternative to suspension for students that have violated campus tobacco policies. It is also not a cessation tool for students currently using tobacco products. If you are an educator in need of resources for students currently using tobacco products, take a look at the free resources below:
Help Students Quit:
•This is Quitting. The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center is proud to partner with the Truth Initiative to offer This is Quitting to Texas young people ages 13-24. Youth can text VAPEFREETX to 88709 to receive free, anonymous, 24/7 support through this program. Parents of young vapers can text QUIT to 202-899-7550 to receive messages designed specifically for them, including tips and advice for helping to support their young person quit. If you would like to receive materials to promote This is Quitting, complete this interest form.
Alternatives to Suspension:
•MY Healthy Future (Alternative-to-Suspension). The MY Healthy Future Course, from Stanford Medicine, is part of the Tobacco Prevention Toolkit’s Healthy Futures Program. This course is for any student caught using tobacco/vaping on school campus, or anyone working with students who want to quit. This new, online, self-paced course can be completed independently by students in 40-60 minutes.
• INDEPTH. Intervention for Nicotine Dependence: Education, Prevention, Tobacco and Health (INDEPTH) is a new, convenient alternative to suspension or citation that helps schools and communities address the teen vaping problem in a more supportive way. Instead of solely focusing on punitive measures, INDEPTH is an interactive program that teaches students about nicotine dependence, establishing healthy alternatives and how to kick the unhealthy addiction that got them in trouble in the first place.
ASPIRE Resources
What Students Have to Say about ASPIRE
95%
say they learned new facts about tobacco from ASPIRE
93%
say that ASPIRE influenced them to lead a tobacco free lifestyle
95%
have a greater understanding of how tobacco use affects their health after taking ASPIRE
ASPIRE Videos
ASPIRE News
What is synthetic nicotine?
Beating a nicotine addiction is one of the toughest things a person can do, but it can be one of the best things for your health. Nicotine usually consumed through smoking, snorting or chewing leaves from the tobacco plant, which all cause cancer and other health problems. But now companies offer synthetic nicotine – a human-made nicotine that offers a nicotine hit without the tobacco.”
Read the full article here.
Menthol cigarettes: The FDA's proposed ban and why they’re more harmful
Cigarette smoking has been on the decline for years. But menthol cigarettes are one segment of the tobacco market that has remained strong.The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) proposed new rules today to prohibit these products and flavored cigars. These proposed rules are in response to public health concerns about the dangers of menthol cigarettes and their huge popularity among young people and Black, Hispanic and Asian American smokers.
Read the full article here.
This website is based on the school curriculum called ASPIRE (A Smoking Prevention Interactive Experience) developed by MD Anderson Cancer Center with assistance from The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston. Funding has been provided by the National Cancer Institute, the George & Barbara Bush Endowment for Innovative Cancer Research and Tobacco Settlement Funds. ASPIRE has been thoroughly reviewed and included in the NCI's RTIPs database as an evidence-based program as well as being endorsed by SAMHSA and the Cochrane Review.