West MI School Cracking Down on ‘Devious Licks’ TikTok Challenge Participants
The "Devious Licks" Challenge... at the risk of sounding old and out of touch, I'll be honest and say I thought it had something to do with sweet guitar licks... or like, people opening ice cream at grocery stores and licking it? Remember when that was a thing?
But no.
It's a viral TikTok challenge (well it was anyway, before TikTok banned it and removed all the videos) - and one West Michigan school is fed up with students doing it.
The Devious Licks Challenge involves students stealing or damaging items from school and showing them off on social media. As for where the name comes from, here's how Urban Dictionary defines a "lick":
A successful type of theft which results in an acceptable, impressive and rewarding payday for the protagonist.
According to Wood TV 8, Hudsonville High School Principal Jordan Beel says that in the last week, students have stolen lunch trays, soap dispensers, and even sink fixtures, forcing the school to close some bathrooms.
A letter went out to parents about the Devious Licks Challenge and the damage done to the school.
Beel says most of the damage has been fixed, but students involved could be facing penalties. Depending on the cost of items, the Ottawa County Sheriff's office says felony charges are possible, Wood TV 8 reports.
Beel tells Wood TV 8,
Schools all around the area are facing this right now and I think it’s a good lesson for parents to make sure that they are monitoring their students’ social media and having conversations about that so that they’re not getting themselves into trouble.
Some of the Hudsonville students have already been caught and the school is continuing to investigate.
MLive reports that Michigan's Grand Blanc High School Principal Michael Fray also sent a letter to parents about damage to school property due to the viral challenge:
The high school is currently missing eight soap dispensers, Frey said, has had multiple toilets intentionally clogged and “various other acts of malicious destruction” in what students call “devious licks.”