Effective Aug. 22, 2005, the first day of Fall Semester classes, the San Antonio College campus will become smoke-free. Smoking is prohibited beyond the parking lots.
"This policy will benefit everyone by creating a more healthy environment for study and work," said Dr. Robert E. Zeigler, president.
The policy marks the final step in a plan to gradually eliminate smoking at the college. After a year of open forums, surveys, and discussions among college groups, the College Academic Council unanimously passed the Smoking Policy during the Spring 2004 Semester. Throughout the last academic year, smoking was limited to designated locations, and free smoking cessation classes were offered to faculty, students and staff.
Students, faculty and staff may go to the College Health Center (Chance Academic Center, Room 119) for information about smoking cessation classes and resources.
Dr. Zeigler noted that eliminating smoking on campus will prevent second-hand hazards for people with serious allergies, improve campus cleanliness, and save valuable staff time cleaning up cigarette butts.
He said this policy aligns the college with the City of San Antonio's similar efforts and with national studies that clearly show how dangerous smoking is to our health and environment.
Information about the dangers of smoking for college students and the general population is available at the College Tobacco Prevention Resource website at http://www.ttac.org/college/facts/negative-effects.html. For smoking cessation information, call the College Health Center at 733-2790.
