MIAMI, Okla. —
Courtney Crosby, 18, usually heads to a table and chairs just outside her apartment building when she wants to smoke.
She was surprised last week to learn that the entire campus of Northeastern Oklahoma A&M College — including her chosen smoking area — will soon become tobacco-free.
“It’s like, what? Why? It’s ridiculous,” she said Friday while sitting in the lobby of her apartment building, which is located on the edge of the campus. “My friends and I are going to have to get lawn chairs and go sit across the street.”
NEO becoming a smoke-free campus is the result of a directive from Gov. Mary Fallin, who in February signed an order prohibiting the use of all tobacco products in buildings, on land and in vehicles owned or leased by state agencies. That includes state colleges and universities.
The new policy at NEO takes effect Aug. 6. Smoking and other tobacco use will not be allowed anywhere on campus, including outdoors, in the parking lots or in campus vehicles. The current policy prohibits smoking in buildings and within 25 feet of building entrances.
Crosby, an incoming student who is taking summer classes, said she thinks the ban will make it inconvenient for her.
“There’s really not much of a reason for it that I can see,” she said.
Other students said they will appreciate the change.
Hollie Snyder, a 21-year-old student who will graduate in December, said she thinks the ban is a good idea.
“People smoke in front of doors, and you walk past it and get a whiff of it, and it’s gross,” said Snyder, who does not smoke.
Dillon Proctor, 18, of Caddo, will start his studies at NEO in the fall. A nonsmoker, he said the ban could improve the campus.
“It’ll just be a lot healthier and better campus to be around,” said Proctor, who was at NEO on Friday for 8-Man All-Star Football Week.
Jacob Mount, who also does not smoke, said he can see the viewpoint of both smokers and nonsmokers.
“It’ll be good for the kids who don’t smoke. You don’t have to take a chance with secondhand smoke, and you can stay smoke-free,” said the 18-year-old incoming student from Welch. “It’s really not convenient for the kids who do smoke. They have to walk off campus or get in their car and go off campus instead of just getting outside to smoke.”
Administrators at NEO were looking into making the change to a tobacco-free campus before Fallin’s order, said Amy Ishmael, vice president for student affairs and enrollment management. A group of students had pitched the idea last fall, and the results of an online survey set up to gauge student and faculty opinions on the proposal were mostly positive, she said.
Administrators were considering putting the policy into place by the fall of 2013. Fallin’s order simply pushed that date up by one year, Ishmael said.
Tom Robertson, chief of campus police, said the new policy will be posted on signs throughout the campus. Violations will result in a warning or a citation plus a fine, he said.
Other schools
At Missouri Southern State University, tobacco products are not allowed inside buildings, according to the 2012 student handbook. Smoking is prohibited in buildings at Pittsburg State University as well, according to a list of policies available on the school’s website.
Local News
NEO to go completely tobacco-free in August
- Local News
-
-
Farmers Insurance teams up with Rebuild Joplin
Farmers Insurance announced Tuesday that the company will team up with Rebuild Joplin for an initiative to help the community complete its recovery efforts. The company already has placed one of its executives in Joplin, and it is pledging additional funds and volunteer hours by company workers to go toward the city’s recovery.
-
Former IRS worker gets probation after guilty plea to theft of funds
Pittsburg resident and former Internal Revenue Service employee Becky L. Book received two years probation after pleading guilty earlier this year to the theft of $26,449.65 in public funds.
-
Joplin residents can sign Banner of Hope for Moore during anniversary event today
Joplin residents will be able to sign a 20-foot banner sending messages of hope and encouragement to the people of Moore, Okla., during the anniversary ceremony today in Cunningham Park.
-
Crowder president to join MSSU staff
Alan Marble, who will retire as president of Crowder College in June, has been hired as special assistant to the president of Missouri Southern State University. “With his long experience in higher education administration and his intricate knowledge of the needs of students, we knew Dr. Marble would be a great fit at MSSU,” President Bruce Speck said in a statement that announced the transition.
-
Mike Pound: Husband helps pull off surprise for Carl Junction teacher
Keri Keckley said the key to pulling off the Sunday surprise was the deceptive minister.
Boy, if that isn’t a great opening line for a crime novel, I don’t know what is. But in this case, the line doesn’t belong in a crime novel. It belongs in this column. -
Arma mother facing murder charge in sleeping baby’s death
Heather Buckalew fell asleep on a couch with her 4-month-old baby after a night last summer drinking beer with her boyfriend. The boyfriend, Donald Harvey, got up to go to work a few hours later and spotted his son, lying face down on a pillow between the back of the couch and his sleeping mother.
-
Joplin residents lend a hand in Moore
Joplin is paying it forward. The day before the two-year anniversary of an EF-5 tornado leveling one-third of Joplin, pastors from Ignite Church in Joplin were in Moore, where an EF-5 spent 40 minutes on the ground on Monday.
-
‘Letting Go Day’ planned to help clear the clutter
When Ann Leach lost most of her possessions in the tornado that struck Joplin on May 22, 2011, she realized that things don’t matter that much.
-
Monetary donations cited as best help for Moore
Financial support for organizations providing shelter and supplies to Oklahoma tornado survivors is recommended for people who want to help. Otherwise, the word is to wait for requests.
-
Joplin man continues struggle to recover two years after tornado
As the Joplin tornado passed overhead, sweeping the house at 2430 S. Pennsylvania Ave. away in its wake, there was a moment of calm. Delbert Mcguirk was on his back in the basement, where he had sought shelter along with his wife, daughter and two grandchildren. In that moment of relative quiet, he stared up into the eye of the tornado.
- More Local News Headlines
-
