An update to the current West Virginia University smoking policy is expected to occur within the 2012 spring semester. The current policy, adopted in 1990, bans smoking from University buildings, with special accommodations for residence halls. The WVU smoking task force, appointed by WVU President James P. Clements, issued recommendations to Clements in April 2010 to consider a more restrictive smoking policy on campus.
“I do not know the exact timetable on when this policy will be sent to the Board of Governors, but my sense is that it will happen soon,” said C.B. Wilson, WVU associate provost and head of the smoking task force. “That is, certainly sometime this semester, it will go to the board.
Wilson said there will be a period of consideration after the 30-day comment period in which the University will review the public’s comments.
The proposed policy will be published online during the 30-day comment period. Clements announced during a faculty senate meeting Monday the University was close to announcing a revised smoking policy to the WVU Board of Governors.
Wilson said the president requested the WVU Office of Legal Affairs and the Office of Administration and Finance review the recommendation by the task force. Representatives of the two offices are set to offer their feedback to Clements during January.
“The task force agreed not to discuss the exact detail of the recommendations to give the president some latitude to decide which recommendations to accept,” Wilson said.
The areas of consideration forwarded by the task force include an outline of areas for a smoke-free campus, the development of a written policy to be considered by the BOG, education and signage of any new policy procedures, the expansion of cessation programs, considerations for the policy during special campus events, the consideration of residence halls and employee groups and the creation of a culture of compliance.
“We sense that sometime in the spring semester there will be a policy put out for public comment from the board of governors,” said John Bolt, WVU spokesman. The WVU Robert C. Byrd Health Sciences Center has been tobacco-free since June 4, 2010.
“What they’re recommending is a broadening of the policy that we currently have, which is that there is no smoking in campus buildings,” Bolt said. “The Health Sciences has a tobacco-free policy for its entire campus; what we’re now looking at is the rest of the campus.”
Tags: campus smoking ban