It’s only a matter of time before MSU bans all forms of tobacco use on campus, according to MSU officials.
“I think that it’s clear that this is the direction we’re going in,” spokesman Jason Cody said. “I definitely think it’s a matter of when this happens and not if this happens.”
It’s unknown when the ordinance would be implemented, but Cody said a task force is currently drafting one that could go before the Board of Trustees for vote as early as this summer.
The task force, announced last week and spearheaded by the University Physician’s Office, is also charged with developing a plan to best transition the campus to a tobacco-free one, Cody said.
If passed and implemented, the all-inclusive tobacco ban, which includes e-cigarettes and chewing tobacco, would place MSU among Western Michigan University, University of Michigan, Northern Michigan University and other state universities who have already banned at least smoking tobacco on their campuses.
With the plan to ban in its early stages, Cody said the specific repercussions for violating the ordinance are up in the air but would be similar to those in effect at U-M.
“We don’t envision this as a punitive policy with strong enforcement,” Cody said. “We view this more as an educational policy. So as far as repercussions, that’s hard to say.”
At U-M, where only smoking is banned, students who are repeat offenders are directed to the Office of Student Conflict Resolution, rather than to law enforcement, according to the U-M website.
In a statement MSU Provost June Youatt said the move to ban aligns with the administration’s push for a healthier campus.
“The rationale for this transition rests largely on a fundamental concern for the health of the entire campus community,” Youatt said, citing research on tobacco’s harmful effects. “Moving toward implementation of a tobacco-free policy aligns with our efforts to create the healthiest academic and workplace environment possible at MSU.”
The task force is launching a website, complete with FAQs and progress reports, that could go live this week, Cody said.
