At the January 31 Student Government (SG) meeting, there was a presentation on future smoking policy changes and elections were held for for GCCIS and CAST senators.

Smoking Policy Changes

Donna Rubin, assistant vice president for wellness initiatives, and Mike Stojkovic, assistant director for wellness, presented changes for policy C16.0 which affects smoking on campus. The current form of the proposed policy would ban all forms of tobacco products, such as cigars, cigarettes, dip and pipes, as well as e-cigarettes on all university managed property.

A committee was formed to tackle these changes in October 2012. Many faculty members and some students participated and formed various sub-committees to reach an agreement and research other school’s policies. They also spoke with international students to see how they would be affected.

If implemented, there will be a 12 to 18 month rollout period before the changes would take effect. In that time, the changes would be marketed in an attempt to change the culture on campus and support wellness. Many SG members were not in favor of a total ban and suggested limited smoking areas instead. Rubin and Stojkovic asked students to contact them through email with additional questions or concerns. The policy will be presented at the next Institute Council meeting for a vote.

GCCIS and CAST Elections

Senator elections were held for the GCCIS and CAST positions. The members of SG asked the candidates a variety of questions in relation to dealing with underrepresented groups in the schools, creating a closer sense of community and ideas for programs to implement. The winners were Vincent Petrone, a third year computer science major, for GCCIS and Kelsey Keifer, a third year environmental sustainability, health and safety major, for CAST.