Schools across the country are warning their students not to take part in a popular TikTok challenge that has left a trail of destruction behind or face the consequences.
From Texas to Pennsylvania, Kansas and Georgia, school administrators are finding damage left over from “The Bathroom Challenge” or “The Devious Lick Challenge,” which has gained popularity on TikTok.
The challenges involve destroying or stealing school property, WPVI reported.
At the East Independent School District’s high school buildings, educators told KSAT that they’ve found soap dispensers, paper towel dispensers, mirrors and even light fixtures ripped from their mounts.
Superintendent Marybeth Torchia said they’ve been seeing similar damage in the Boyertown Area School District, WPVI reported.
In Kansas, Witchita Public Schools have seen some of the same destruction, but it’s being called “minor vandalism or theft.”
Wichita Public Schools Director of Safety Terri Moses said the damage was “nothing major. It just disrupts school,” KWCH reported.
Maize High School administrators have locked many bathrooms, leaving only the ones that are said to be in a common area open, KWCH reported.
A similar response is being done at Hayfield Secondary School in the Fairfax County School District in Virginia, where parents were informed that vandalism had occurred in some student bathrooms in the school. Remote bathrooms are being locked and limits on how many students are allowed to leave a class at one time are being instituted, with teachers marking down who has left and how long they were gone from the classroom.
School officials from various districts have said that if a student is found damaging property punishment will be handed down.
The executive director of communications at the North East Independent School District told KSAT: “We have been able to identify many of those involved and more are expected to be identified soon. We take the destruction and stealing of property very seriously. The students responsible not only face discipline at school, but they will also be responsible for the financial impact.”
At Boyertown Area School District, the administration is taking it a step further. Not only will students face suspension, they will also face criminal charges, WPVI reported.
Jones County High School in Gray, Georgia, posted a message on Facebook telling students and their parents the consequences if they are caught taking part in what the high school called “theft of government property.”
A spokesperson from TikTok released a statement saying, “We expect our community to stay safe and create responsibly, and we do not allow content that promotes or enables criminal activities. We are removing this content and redirecting hashtags and search results to our Community Guidelines to discourage such behavior.”