New Jersey college passes campus wide smoking ban
Patricia Alex
Issue date: 10/19/07 Section: News
Across the country, most of the campuswide bans are at smaller and commuter schools. Efforts have foundered to enact such policies at some larger schools.
Opponents say smoking bans could create safety issues at residential schools, forcing students off campus.
"It can put the student in a dangerous situation," said Michael McFadden, a regional smokers' rights advocate. He said the bans amount to social engineering that is more Orwellian than American.
But the movement is picking up steam, said Frick, of the national nonsmokers group. The University of Iowa is considering a total ban by 2009. The 39,000-student main campus at Purdue University is now smoke-free, thanks to a ban on all public smoking in West Lafayette, Ind., where it is located.
As at Bergen Community, most of the campus bans are a matter of school policy rather than local law. Under Bergen's plan, violators would be warned to stop and could face "disciplinary action" or removal from campus.
Those sanctions are part of the school's current policy, which prohibits smoking inside and within 50 feet of school buildings. That policy is not always enforced, despite prominent signs. On a recent sunny afternoon, a pair of students sat smoking on a bench - right under a "No Smoking" sign.
"A lot of kids go through stress at school; they need to come out and have a smoke," said Rommie Shihaeh, who was sharing a cigarette with a friend, Nazir Uddin. The students, both from Elmwood Park, said smokers at least need a designated area - even if it is far from the buildings.
Ryan vowed "diligent and consistent" enforcement of the new policy, but said there will be some flexibility involved as well. "We don't want to be a police state," he said. The policy would be enforced "from the front gate to the back gate, but we're not going to harass people smoking in their cars," he said.
At the County College of Morris, the policy calls for a series of fines for violators: $25 for the first offense, $50 for the second and $75 for the third. President Edward Yaw said some fines have been levied but, for the most part, students and staff have embraced the policy voluntarily. He said the ban was well publicized in the semester prior to its enforcement and that students and staff were offered help in quitting smoking.
"It's been quite successful," he said. "We had special concerns for employees 1/8 who smoke 3/8 on how to help them get through a seven-hour day."
Opponents say smoking bans could create safety issues at residential schools, forcing students off campus.
"It can put the student in a dangerous situation," said Michael McFadden, a regional smokers' rights advocate. He said the bans amount to social engineering that is more Orwellian than American.
But the movement is picking up steam, said Frick, of the national nonsmokers group. The University of Iowa is considering a total ban by 2009. The 39,000-student main campus at Purdue University is now smoke-free, thanks to a ban on all public smoking in West Lafayette, Ind., where it is located.
As at Bergen Community, most of the campus bans are a matter of school policy rather than local law. Under Bergen's plan, violators would be warned to stop and could face "disciplinary action" or removal from campus.
Those sanctions are part of the school's current policy, which prohibits smoking inside and within 50 feet of school buildings. That policy is not always enforced, despite prominent signs. On a recent sunny afternoon, a pair of students sat smoking on a bench - right under a "No Smoking" sign.
"A lot of kids go through stress at school; they need to come out and have a smoke," said Rommie Shihaeh, who was sharing a cigarette with a friend, Nazir Uddin. The students, both from Elmwood Park, said smokers at least need a designated area - even if it is far from the buildings.
Ryan vowed "diligent and consistent" enforcement of the new policy, but said there will be some flexibility involved as well. "We don't want to be a police state," he said. The policy would be enforced "from the front gate to the back gate, but we're not going to harass people smoking in their cars," he said.
At the County College of Morris, the policy calls for a series of fines for violators: $25 for the first offense, $50 for the second and $75 for the third. President Edward Yaw said some fines have been levied but, for the most part, students and staff have embraced the policy voluntarily. He said the ban was well publicized in the semester prior to its enforcement and that students and staff were offered help in quitting smoking.
"It's been quite successful," he said. "We had special concerns for employees 1/8 who smoke 3/8 on how to help them get through a seven-hour day."
Viewing Comments 1 - 2 of 2
Pete
posted 10/20/07 @ 8:46 PM EST
This seems to be a quickly growing trend across the US. It's important to not let young people think that smoking is accepted everywhere. It's the biggest single preventable cause of death in the country. (Continued…)
Sam Nettles
posted 10/21/07 @ 12:34 AM EST
This is another example of a world gone batty. Millions of smokers can attest to the fact that smoking is not a health factor for them. Only junk science says it is. (Continued…)
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