Ozarks Technical Community College — Tobacco-Free
in 2003
Ozarks Technical Community College —100% Tobacco-free
Enrollment: 8,000 +
Type/Category: 100% Tobacco-free
Program and Background: Ozarks Technical
Community College (OTC) became a 100% tobacco-free campus
on August 1, 2003. The movement to make OTC tobacco-free began
in the late 1990’s, when the Board of Trustees adopted
a resolution to implement a tobacco-free campus policy in
2003. The adoption of this policy was prompted by:
- An overall desire to create a safe and healthy environment
for students
- The daily presence of secondary students on campus
- Debris littering the campus
- Smoky areas at building entrances
- Community efforts to eradicate tobacco use in public
settings
OTC took a four-pronged approach to becoming a tobacco-free
campus:
- Providing education and information to the campus community
through strategically placed resource rooms
- Offering smoking cessation assistance to the campus community
- Forming a Tobacco-Free Advisory Committee to guide efforts
on implementing the tobacco-free campus policy
- Planning seminars, discussion groups, and special events
to gain the support of faculty and staff members
The Tobacco-Free Advisory Committee launched an awareness
campaign to promote the policy throughout the campus and the
broader community. The slogan "Tobacco-Free in '03"
was printed on T-shirts and frisbees that were distributed
to students and faculty at picnics and health fairs. Additionally,
in January 2004 OTC created the Center of Excellence for Tobacco-Free
Policy to provide tobacco-free resources and empowerment to
local, state, and national institutions of higher education.
Results: The tobacco-free campus policy
went into effect on August 1, 2003. For the first year, OTC
Safety and Security Officers emphasized voluntary compliance
and did not cite students for using tobacco products on campus.
However, OTC entered the second phase of enforcement on October
18, 2004, and began issuing written citations to those who
broke the tobacco-free campus policy.
The number of students at OTC who use tobacco has decreased
since the policy was enacted. In the Spring of 2003, 31% of
students reported current tobacco use and by Fall 2003 those
number had decreased to 26%.
Future: OTC continues to strive to keep
the tobacco-free campus policy enforced and supported amongst
campus community members. OTC also aims to integrate information
about the policy change into health fairs, student focus groups,
ongoing surveys, class discussion and projects, a tobacco-free
policy newsletter for incoming students, and permanent signage
on campus.
Contact Information:
Ty Patterson
Vice President of Student Development
patterst@otc.edu
Or, visit the OTC is Tobacco-Free website at:
www.otc.edu/tobacco-free.htm
This case study brief was written in June 2005.
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