Petition to UK Administration

We believe that everybody has the right to pursue their educational and career goals in a healthy and safe environment. Furthermore, it is the responsibility of the campus administration to ensure that this right is achieved for all members of the community. The Tobacco-free Policy at UK is important to campus well being because its goal is to improve air quality and lung health for all students, faculty, and visitors. However, achieving this goal requires more action than solely the implementation of the policy. We believe that it is necessary to educate the community, to increase awareness of the policy, and to enforce it on campus. The administration needs to improve enforcement of the policy in order to generate more compliance, which will help in creating the healthy and safe campus that Tobacco-free Policy promises. Sign this petition if you agree that UK should do more in tackling the smoking problem on campus. Below are the areas that we believe need to be improved if we want to uphold the right of all individuals to breathe clean air that doesn't endanger their health or success at UK.

Education is empowerment. It’s a way of giving individuals the tools necessary to create a better community for themselves and others, which is why we believe it’s an effective method of enacting change on campus. It’s important to offer information and research about smoking that will motivate people to comply to the policy or to quit smoking altogether. Thus, we think that seminars and events on campus that allow individuals to get involved and learn more about the issue will be beneficial to building a safer and healthier community for everyone. Providing individuals with the complete knowledge of smoking and UK’s policy will increase the likelihood of them feeling confident enough to act when they see violations. Also, providing resources to help prevent or treat tobacco usage are vital because they give individuals the support they need to quit smoking.

Increasing awareness of the policy is important to fostering greater compliance. Many people don’t know about the tobacco free policy on campus, as shown in the video, so we believe that the administration should make the effort to make the policy well-known among the campus community. Increasing the placement of posters and signs around campus is effective because it makes the community more aware and reminds them to comply. Also, publicizing the policy more on social media sites like Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter will help reach more people to remind them of the policy and its qualifications. The more people that know about the policy, the less likely they will engage in the use of tobacco products. Furthermore, raising awareness of the policy will increase the likelihood that people will confront violators.

It is necessary that the University of Kentucky increases enforcement of the Tobacco-free policy, if greater compliance is to be achieved. An effective way to enforce the policy is through the implementation of a fine of $150 for violations. This will motivate individuals on campus to obey the policy because they don’t want to pay the price for smoking. This also changes how the community perceives the policy. People on campus will take it more seriously because of the risk involved of losing money, rather than ignoring the policy due to lack of repercussions. We also believe that employing the campus police to patrol the campus to a greater extent will help to ensure that the community follows the rules. Enforcement is important to achieving a healthier and safer campus at UK.