BROOKINGS – Attitudes on smoking and tobacco use have drastically changed these last few decades. Long gone are the days when a pack of cigarettes could be purchased at the SDSU book store, a practice halted in 1974.

With society’s outlook on tobacco so transformed from previous generations, South Dakota State University leaders are considering a proposal to prohibit all tobacco use on university property.

The proposal includes a ban on cigarettes, e-cigarettes, chewing tobacco and other forms of smokeless tobacco anywhere on campus.

“There is a progression in society at large that we’re connecting to, and the expectation is that an educational environment such as ours will be smoke free,” said Doug Wermedal, associate vice president for student affairs.

Wermedal is part of the group that developed the original proposal.

Changing the way SDSU handles tobacco use on campus has been in the works for a long time now. It’s taken about a year to vet through various campus governance agencies the draft form of the policy. Groups such as the Faculty Senate, the Advisory Committee and the Residence Hall Association, among many other campus groups, have had the chance to review the draft policy for themselves.

A coalition of deans, administrators and staff in a group called SDSU Health drafted this updated tobacco-use policy. SDSU Health, explained Wermedal, is dedicated to seeking the betterment of the health of faculty, staff and students and promoting a healthier environment with a greater health awareness.

After gathering input from others, they integrated some of the feedback and submitted the policy to university leadership for consideration. Leadership then revised the policy into an improved draft that took into account Board of Regents policy as well as South Dakota codified law. This work took place during the summer.

In September, university leadership opened the policy for 30 days to public comment, allowing individuals to let administrators know through e-mail any concerns or critiques they might have in regard to the policy language, practice or even adoption and implementation.

This individual approach is rarely done in policy approval.

“Whatever form the final policy takes, no one will be able to assert that they weren’t asked,” Wermedal said. “This is a very thoroughly vetted effort and I applaud university leadership for giving people a chance to weigh in on an individual basis.”

Students split

As president of the Students’ Association, Taylin Albrecht said students are evenly split on their views of the proposed policy change.

“There are very strong voices on both sides,” she said.

She added that the proposal would certainly reflect the typical work environment students can expect to enter, bringing those same expectations to campus. At SDSU, “we learn to be professionals … We are all 21, but we can’t walk around drinking alcohol on campus, so it goes along those lines.”

Most of those who oppose removing tobacco products from campus see it as an individual choice, added Students’ Association Vice President Allyson Helms, while those in favor of the ban see it as a health issue.

Last year, the Students’ Association was against a completely tobacco-free campus. Although the group passed a resolution in favor of smoking prohibitions on campus, it failed to approve measures against the use of other tobacco products and e-cigarettes.

This year’s Students’ Association has not taken a stance on proposed policy.

Timeline unknown

The final day for individual comment was Sept. 30. Now, administrators must review all submitted comments and discern what to incorporate into the policy.

Wermedal expects word on the results of that to be announced sometime this semester. When a new policy might be implemented is trickier to anticipate. Some of the logical points for a new policy to be implemented, he said, could be January 2018, at the start of the new semester; July, at the start of the new fiscal year; and before fall 2018, when staff and students return to campus.

The proposed policy prohibits the use of all tobacco products – cigarettes, e-cigarettes, chewing tobacco, other forms of smokeless tobacco –  on SDSU property. People visiting campus – for a Jackrabbits game, for example – would also have to comply with the new rules.

As is, campus policy is much more liberal, only prohibiting smoking inside campus buildings or within 20 feet of a campus building. This makes SDSU more lenient than other South Dakota universities, all of which have stricter policies in place.

At least in the draft form, disciplinary action is open ended and is not the goal of the policy, according to Wermedal.

If someone is caught using tobacco, they’re provided with material to help encourage and support quitting tobacco use, as well as counseling and other resources. It’s this educational angle that matters to Wermedal and other members of SDSU Health.

After the person receives those materials, any further disciplinary action is up to a supervising figure. For students, that could be residence hall staff or the dean of students, and for staff members, their supervisor.

“It’s not a ‘gotcha’ policy; we’re not going to start some kind of cigarette police,” Wermedal said.

What’s the impact?

With as much as 80 percent of faculty, staff and students already tobacco-free, the policy will have no impact on their lives.

“For most people, more than 3/4 of folks on campus, this is already an issue that’s well resolved. For some folks, it will impact a behavior that, if (the policy is) approved, they may need to adjust some of those behaviors,” Wermedal said.

Helms agreed with that sentiment. “Nobody likes change; that’s the reality of it. It will be a change if it does pass, but ultimately, it will be a change for the good.”

Work will also be necessary to ensure that neighboring property won’t become littered with discarded cigarette butts, Helms said. To combat that, they’d likely install cigarette disposal receptacles near any popular off-campus smoking spots.

SDSU has even received an $18,341 grant from the CVS Health Foundation, the Truth Initiative and the American Cancer Society to help advocate for, adopt and implement tobacco-free campus policies. The CVS Health Foundation had a total of $1.2 million that was awarded to 126 colleges and universities across the U.S.

That $18,000 will go toward wages for hiring two marketing and design students to create educational materials, promote tobacco-quitting services and create a social media marketing plan; cover travel expenses for two Wellness Center professionals who will receive training to become tobacco treatment specialists; supplies such as cessation support kits; and educational materials such as signage that states SDSU is tobacco free.

Contact Eric Sandbulte at esandbulte@brookingsregister.com.