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February
4, 2008
Dear Students, Faculty, and Staff:
After careful consideration, I have decided to accept the recommendation
of the Smoking Policy Review Team that the University of Iowa campus
should become entirely smoke-free by July 1, 2009. A smoke-free
campus will provide a healthier environment for employees, students,
and other constituents. I believe, as well, that a smoke-free environment
can play a significant role, along with other important support
mechanisms, in helping smokers quit. Finally, I expect that this
action will contribute to lower health care costs and increased
employee productivity across the University.
I understand how difficult this change will be for employees and
students who smoke. For that reason, I am accepting the Review
Team's recommendation that full implementation of this policy be
delayed until July 1, 2009. In the meantime, we will be taking
steps to ensure that all employees and students have access to
smoking cessation programs and services at no cost or at sharply
discounted rates. I will be appointing a team to implement this
policy, and the first task of that team will be to ensure that
we are taking every step we can to help smokers quit.
I am grateful to the Smoking Policy Review Team and to the ad hoc
committee that initially recommended a move to a smoke-free campus
for their hard work on this issue. I am especially pleased that
the Review Team consulted widely before making its recommendations
and that its consultations included open-forum discussions of the
issues, conversations with key stakeholder groups, and formal deliberations
on this issue by Staff Council, Student Government, and the Faculty
Senate. Though not everyone agrees with the Review Team's recommendations,
it is clear to me that those recommendations were the product of
a process that reflected the best traditions of shared governance
at the University.
The Review Team's discussions with faculty, staff, and students
revealed a number of issues that will need to be addressed as we
move toward a smoke-free campus. I am confident that the implementation
team will be able to resolve those issues to my satisfaction before
full implementation of a smoke-free policy on July 1, 2009.
Sally Mason
President
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