Effective July 1, Union becomes a tobacco/smoke-free environment.
The initiative, announced last June, bans tobacco use and implements smoke-free policies for buildings and/or on property owned or leased by the College. The College joins more than 70 colleges and universities in New York state that have made the decision to eliminate smoking on their campuses.
Currently, all buildings and campus vehicles are non-smoking areas. Under the new policy, the entire campus will be designated tobacco/smoke-free. Areas on campus officially or unofficially designated as smoking locations will no longer serve as such. Ashtrays will be removed and signage installed reflecting that any and all facilities owned and operated by Union are tobacco/smoke-free environments.
Organizers and attendees at events held in Union facilities - conferences, meetings, public lectures, social and sporting activities - will be required to abide by and enforce the new policy.
A formal rollout of the new policy will take place in the fall. Employees and students will receive a card that they can either recite to violators or give to them. In one part it says, “Members of the campus community are encouraged to advise anyone smoking or using tobacco products that they are not allowed and, when appropriate, direct them off the campus.”
The Task Force for a Tobacco/Smoke-Free Union, a combined student, faculty and staff group, is leading the College’s efforts as it transitions to a tobacco/smoke-free campus. The initiative is supported by senior staff and the Board of Trustees.
A number of cessation and education programs are already available to help members of the Union community quit the habit.