WKU will soon end its designation as the only public university in the state that isn’t tobacco-free.
In an email to faculty and staff this week, President Gary Ransdell said the campus would go tobacco-free by 2018 through a phased-in approach.
Public Health Professor Dr. Cecilia Watkins helped draft the policy and hopes it will spur healthier choices
"Although I've never smoked, I know how addictive nicotine is, and I think it gives people the opportunity to get help with cessation and to change habits they need to change anyway," Watkins told WKU Public Radio.
The new policy will apply to electronic cigarettes, as well.
Starting in January, WKU will reduce the number of sites where smoking is permitted on its main campus in Bowling Green from 48 to 12. The number of sites will be reduced over the next three years until the campus is completely tobacco-free.
Supporters of the new policy say it will reduce litter on campus, but more importantly reduce secondhand smoke, and possibly help smokers kick the habit altogether.
