The latest trend on TikTok, “Devious Licks”, has wreaked havoc on campus and the chaos isn’t over yet. The challenge started with a student filming a TikTok while stealing disposable masks from his high school, and has turned into a nationwide disruption in schools.

To participate in the trend, students film a TikTok of them stealing or vandalizing school property. Bathrooms are the largest target for students, usually aiming to steal items like soap dispensers, or just completely destroy the area.

The students who participate in the trend have no real motive, or truly understand why they do it, but they may find their aftermath quite amusing. 

For instance, one student’s classic mark seems to be the vulgar mess in the big stalls of the girls’ bathroom. They unhook the trash cans attached to the walls in the bathrooms intended for disposal of used feminine hygiene products, dump its contents into the toilets, and pile the trash can on top in the bowl. Then, they throw around toilet paper, dismantle the soap dispensers, and sprinkle red powerade on the newly created mess. 

For some students, the aim is to unscrew and displace as many items as possible, especially in the bathrooms. Now, soap dispensers are noticeably missing from campus. Students have slobbered vaseline onto stall door handles, thrown soap everywhere in the building bathrooms, rolled toilet paper through the entirety of the J building, taken home full-sized trash cans, or gone as far to unscrew a stall door so when another student were to open it, the door would crash. The list goes on.

“The damage is disruptive at this point, it’s not funny- at least that’s what the considerate people at this school think,” said one student.

To combat the vandalism, teachers and supervisors have begun taking new precautionary measures.

For instance, students have begun to notice that more bathrooms have been closed during class and after school. In addition, administration has asked teachers to log when students use the restroom during class, and may only allow one student out at a time. Not to mention, cameras are located almost everywhere on campus (excluding areas like restrooms, locker rooms, etc.), and on occasion teachers will receive an email with a screenshot of a student committing a “lick,” or stealing, and be asked to identify them. 

Administration has since made students aware of the severe ramifications associated with the challenge, threatening students who participate with suspension, expulsion, and legal charges. Students found guilty are forced to pay reparations of property damage, and consequences will vary based on the severity of the act.

“While none of the damage has been too severe, the cost does add up and ultimately it is detrimental to our beautiful campus to purposefully ruin or steal things,” said principal Dr. Mahindrakar.

While September may be over, the “Devious Lick” challenge does not seem to be ending. Regardless, it is just the first of many controversial school trends to come. Each month of the school year has a different challenge from a list compiled by TikTok users. Coming up, October’s trend has been set as “Smack a Staff Member,” one that campus is surely disturbed by.