It’s a waiting game to see whether the University will be smoke-free, tobacco-free or something in between, said Kurt Keppler, vice chancellor for Student Life and Enrollment and smoke free campus committee chair. The proposed policy is currently being reviewed by Executive Vice Chancellor and provost Stuart Bell before he makes a final recommendation to LSU President F. King Alexander.
The committee gave its final recommendation to the provost a couple weeks ago, Keppler said. The recommendation specified a smoke-free campus, noting the campus population had differing views on the extent to which the campus should restrict tobacco usage, he said.
The differing views can be seen in the divide between student and faculty legislative bodies. The LSU Faculty Senate passed a resolution at its March meeting, recommending a ban on “any and all forms of tobacco.” In contrast, Student Government passed a resolution in January against a tobacco ban.
The committee’s final recommendation found a balance between SG and Faculty Senate, including restrictions on smoking, along with e-cigarettes, while not banning all tobacco use, Keppler said. The recommendation did not include language restricting chewing tobacco or snuff, nor did it make a statement about the viability of a loophole regarding the sidewalk of Highland Road.
Smoking cessation classes are a definite priority moving forward with the policy, Keppler said. He said the University would likely offer help for faculty and staff trying to quit smoking through human resources, while students would likely receive assistance through efforts from the Student Health Center. Ryan Landry, coordinator in the Office of Academic Affairs, said while the policy itself may not stipulate anything about helping smokers quit, the University’s broader effort to become smoke-free may include such help.
The Paul M. Hebert Law Center’s recent realignment with the University creates possible issues in the future for potential smoke-free status at the Law Center, Landry said. For the near future, however, the University is under mandate from the LSU Board of Supervisors to move forward on realignment, meaning the Law Center is still governed by its own policies, Landry said.
Landry said Bell talked with the various vice chancellors and is considering student and faculty opinions on the matter before he makes his final recommendation based on the smoke-free campus committee’s submission. Keppler said Bell will review the specific language of the proposed policy, among other things.
Keppler said, based on his experience with the policy, he thinks the most likely outcome of the policy process will be a smoke-free campus, rather than tobacco-free. He acknowledged, however, many universities are transitioning to tobacco- free and the University may elect to do so in the future.
Landry said the final deadline for implementation is Aug. 1, but he expects the provost to deliver his final recommendation to Alexander in a few weeks.