Nicholls officials requested suggestions from various committees on ways to change the University’s smoking policy to better enforce smoking restrictions on campus.Eugene Dial, vice president of student affairs and enrollment services, said he asked several University committees to propose ways to enforce and alter the current smoking policy, which states no one can smoke on walkways or within 25 feet of a building on campus.
“If we don’t get people following the policy, I see us going to a non-smoking campus,” Dial said.
Ryan Donegan, Student Government Association president, led the Student Senate’s discussion of ways to enforce the smoking policy at last week’s meeting. The discussion included ideas for monetary fines and designated smoking areas.
“The SGA basically does not favor a smoke free campus at this time,” Donegan said. “We rather like the current policy as of now and would like to see some enforcement of the policy since, unfortunately, the current policy is being disregarded.”
The senate agreed to suggest having University Police, not student workers who ticket vehicles, give tickets to smokers in violation because they do not think students would do well in confronting violators. “Currently the enforcement of the policy is not really in the hands of anyone and is a bit laxed, which is why I believe it is being reevaluated,” Donegan said.
Whitney Dupuy, SGA director of student rights and grievances, said students would stop violating the policy once they hear students are being ticketed for it. She also said a no-smoking policy would not work at Nicholls. “If we can’t enforce 25 feet, we can’t enforce a smoke-free campus,” Dupuy said.
Craig Jaccuzzo, director of University Police, said his student workers would probably encounter more conflict ticketing vehicles than they would smokers. “These student workers are confronted on a daily basis,” Jaccuzzo said. “I think students would be less argumentative about smoking violations.”
Jaccuzzo said the current smoking policy is enforced by administration. “They take whatever measures appropriate,” Jaccuzzo said. “We try not to get involved too much unless we’re called to do so.”
Dial said the reevaluation is less about punishing violators with consequences and more about getting smokers to respect the University and its policies.
“Some people would think you could punish people into following the rules, but I don’t think you can punish them into following policy,” Dial said. He said repeat parking offenders are an example of why policies should not be enforced through consequences. “In a university environment, we don’t want to create a police state.”
These changes are still in the discussion stage within various committees. “The policy is just in discussion, and SGA gave input into the discussion regarding what we think would be an effective way to enforce and keep the current smoking policy,” Donegan said. “Our suggestion may be used, and it may not be.”
Some smokers on campus disagree with the policy and enforcing violators. Matthew Morris, culinary senior from Oxford, Miss., said enforcing the smoking policy outdoors is against his rights as an American citizen. “It’s hard to enforce something that’s unconstitutional,” Morris said. “I’d like to see a study on secondhand smoke in a open-air environment.”
Morris said he dealt with designated smoking areas at another college but never monetary fines. “If they gave me a ticket, I’d wipe my ass with it and give it to the cop,” Morris said.
Aimee Lucia, culinary junior from Baton Rouge, said she and most other smokers do not pose a problem to non-smoking students. “I think we’re pretty polite about it,” Lucia said. “It’s not like we blow smoke in your face.”
Matthew Bordelon, culinary senior from Kenner, does not smoke but said it is not fair to enforce a policy students did not vote on.
Andree St. Romain, English sophomore from Jarreau, said smokers do not bother him on campus. “They break the policy all the time, but as long as they’re not throwing butts all the time, it’s fine,” St. Romain said.
