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Printer-Friendly ModeSmoking policy examined
November 12, 2007 —
The implementation of the newest smoking policy on campus has left me wondering how it is actually going to be enforced.
Beginning on Jan. 1, smoking will be prohibited on SVSU's campus, unless it is done in designated parking lots. And, there is a catch. If these smokers are still within 25 feet of any building, they are breaking the rules. This policy is a nice attempt, but it's easier said than done. A policy such as this is so hard to enforce that people will go around it, making more chaos in the campus community.
It seems to me Delta turning to a smoke-free campus caused an idea of change for SVSU as well. This comparison makes little sense.
First, Delta is a commuter college. SVSU may not have as many residents on campus as some bigger universities, but there are students living here nonetheless. The idea of having these residents leave their rooms in the middle of winter and walk to a designated smoking area seems unrealistic.
The second reason this comparison with Delta doesn't seem valid is because SVSU's facilities are not only for classes, as many of Delta's are. Our campus holds seminars, conferences, wedding receptions, and plays. What is going to happen in this situation? Is there going to be a smoking guard standing at each door notifying the guests about the policy? I doubt it.
While the idea of using Delta's policy as an example is a good one, we must remember the comparison between these schools in student population alone. With SVSU's population close to 10,000 students, it would be nearly impossible to keep smokers away from all buildings at all times.
The people I think will be affected the most by this policy aren't the smokers, or the non-smokers, but instead, the Resident Assistants, or RAs. These students already have enough responsibility and will now be faced with a babysitting duty. They will spend most of their time showing smokers where they can and cannot smoke as well as possibly smoking in the designated area with them. This seems like a childish thing to do, but since there is no real way to enforce the policy, it must take place.
Students are advised to report seeing anyone smoking outside the limitations set in the new policy. This, again, is a good idea. However, I don't see many college students running to a computer right away to report the incident. And, if they did, who's to say it's the truth?
Now, this policy won't be much of a nuisance to me, I'm a non-smoker. It just seems illogical to go through all of this debate, make a formal policy in which everyone is to follow, and not have any real consequences.