American University, like 1,400 other universities, has a no-smoking policy. But “the policy is not as effective as it could be,” said Maria Eckrich, originally from South Dakota but now a graduate student at AU. People still smoke or chew tobacco around campus, she said.
Another student, Sydney Ling, says that some of her friends are smokers, and they do not like the system, which hasn’t help them quit, she said. The policy has angered the smokers and some try to get away with smoking on campus, Ling said.
However, Sarah Menke-Fish, an assistant professor at the School Of Communication, said that, overall, the policy was effective because the campus is much cleaner. “There used to be a wave of smoke when I walked outside,” Menke-Fish said. But the university has not always been smoke-free.
The no-smoking policy began in 2013 and received mixed reactions. Kirstin Gebhart, assistant field hockey coach, graduated in 2011. When she was a student at AU she would see people smoking on the quad and in front of building entrances, she said. But now, she no longer sees cigarette butts on the ground and smoke in the air, she said.
However the policy must be policed by the AU community.
Students in the Tobacco Free Ambassadors organization walk around campus until 8 p.m. to make sure it is tobacco-free, said Michelle Espinosa, associate dean of students. If a student or staff member is found smoking, a tobacco-free ambassador collects his or her name and American University ID number. Students caught three times will be referred to a disciplinary panel and will have to defend their actions, Espinosa said.
Resident advisers must check rooms three times a year — but not just for tobacco. They must also check that students don’t have hotplates or coffee makers in their rooms, and to make sure all smoke detectors are working, Espinosa said. Having cigarettes in your room is not against the policy, but if the advisers know a student has been smoking in their dorm room, they will take the cigarettes from students.
“Freshman have been less influenced to smoke,” and may change the future of AU, said Menke-Fish.