Fentanyl awareness lessons now being taught in schools in new push to halt overdoses

School districts across California have added fentanyl awareness lessons to their curriculum in a new push to educate students about the dangers of the drug.

"The county's efforts to fight fentanyl on all fronts have helped reduce deaths at a rapid pace, but we are not done," Riverside Board of Supervisors Chair Karen Spiegel said.

Under state Assembly Bill 2429, which passed in 2024, public schools must deliver a structured "Fentanyl Awareness Curriculum" in health classes to educate students on the hazardous synthetic opioid.

"The Fentanyl Awareness Curriculum is a first-of-its-kind tool to help schools and communities address the growing dangers of fentanyl, making it particularly impactful," county Superintendent of Schools Edwin Gomez said.

Spread across a single semester, the high school instruction consists of eight 50-minute sessions dedicated to teaching youth about the lethal risks of the substance.

"The curriculum will contain vetted information, instructional materials, and lessons that build awareness, empower decision-making and promote student well-being," according to the county Office of Education.

Classroom coursework will detail various illicit drugs and their specific dangers, with an emphasis on fentanyl, while engaging students in activities designed to spot the substance.

Marking the campaign, Fentanyl Prevention & Awareness Day is set for Friday, Aug. 21, reinforcing the county's "Faces of Fentanyl" initiative started in 2022 that prompted the 2025 school materials.

Authorities credit this ongoing outreach with contributing to a significant drop in local fentanyl poisonings, which decreased to 251 last year from a high of 545 recorded in the year ending February 2024.

"We believe prevention and prosecution go hand in hand," District Attorney Mike Hestrin said. "That's why we're working to keep educating our kids to make safe choices and holding accountable those who put poison on our streets."

The mandated program incorporates factual resources contributed by healthcare providers and public safety organizations.

Since AB 2429 was enacted, school systems in other counties have increasingly turned to Riverside County 's model to guide their own educational frameworks.

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