Over the past few years, many institutions including few Ivy League Schools have taken a healthier path by banning tobacco on campuses. Tuesday, a new university was added to the already long and growing list of institutions which are taking a pledge to keep campus community healthy.
University of California- Los Angeles Chancellor Gene Block has announced that the campus is going to be tobacco-free by April 22, 2013.
In a letter sent to the campus community Tuesday, Block said that once the policy takes effect on the Earth Day, the use of cigarettes, cigars, chewing tobacco and all other tobacco products, as well as electronic cigarettes, will be prohibited on UCLA's campus and at sites owned or fully leased by the university.
"A draft of the tobacco-free policy will be available for review by students, faculty and staff beginning Nov. 15. We also plan to ensure that tobacco users in our community have access to a variety of free and low-cost support services, in addition to those provided by health insurance, to help them," he wrote in the letter.
According to the university, UCLA is the first UC campus to announce when it will go tobacco-free, while more than 800 colleges and universities nationwide have already adopted tobacco-free or smoke-free policies.
University of California System President Mark Yudof had earlier requested the university chancellors in January, that institutions under the system to go tobacco-free by 2014. In response to his request, UCLA created a Tobacco-Free Steering Committee, which recommended the policy to Block and will develop an implementation plan.
"Our policy will be that you don't have to quit - you just can't smoke here," said Linda Sarna, who chairs the Tobacco-Free Steering Committee. "But most smokers do want to quit, and research shows that a smoke-free environment increases quit attempts. Even people who didn't plan to quit get annoyed at the inconvenience and decide to try. We'll provide resources to help."
Block also wrote in the letter that UCLA is preparing to announce the "Healthy Campus Initiative," which aims to promote the well-being of entire UCLA community through research, education and practice in areas such as nutrition, physical activity, environment and stress management.
