PROMOTING COMPLIANCE

Creating a supportive, positive, and healthy smoke- and tobacco-free environment for the entire campus is a shared responsibility. We encourage students, staff, faculty, and visitors to promote compliance with the policy. You can report an area on campus where the smoke- and tobacco-free policy is frequently violated here.

YOUR ROLE

All campus leaders are important partners in successfully and effectively implementing this policy. Your role is to:

  1. Comply with the policy
  2. Communicate the policy courteously and non-confrontationally to faculty, staff, students, and visitors in your college/department.
  3. Connect faculty, staff, and students with appropriate resources, including cessation resources.
  4. Address matters of repeated violations of this policy just as you would violations of other policies. Managers/supervisors should hold employees accountable, and address matters of repeated violations; HR staff is available to consult on specific situations, as needed. It is important that we are assessing the impact of the repeated violation in relation to the University’s values and expectations.

APPROACHING SOMEONE WHO IS USING TOBACCO

If you see someone using tobacco on campus, you are encouraged to remind people of the initiative if you feel comfortable doing so. If you do approach someone, please do so in a friendly, respectful manner – the person may not be aware of the policy. If someone becomes agitated or hostile upon being approached, please do not escalate the situation – simply walk away. If the situation escalates to the point where you feel threatened or endangered, please call 911.

These scenarios and scripts are designed to help members of the University community remind people of the smoke- and tobacco-free campus policy.

  • Situation: You see a person using tobacco products on campus.
    Response: Hello, my name is _______, and I am an (employee, student) here at the University of Minnesota. I want to let you know that we are a smoke- and tobacco-free campus. All students, staff, faculty, and visitors are prohibited from smoking and using tobacco products and electronic cigarettes on all University property. Thank you for your cooperation.
  • Situation: "Where am I allowed to smoke?"
    Response: The University of Minnesota is a smoke- and tobacco-free campus. All students, staff, faculty, and visitors are prohibited from smoking and using tobacco products and electronic cigarettes on all University property. You will need to leave the campus to smoke or use tobacco products. Thank you for respecting our policy.
  • Situation: You are making arrangements with a vendor or contractor. 
    Response: I would like to let you know that the University of Minnesota is a smoke- and tobacco-free campus. We respectfully ask that representatives from your organization refrain from smoking and using tobacco products and electronic cigarettes on all University property.
  • Situation: You want to proactively communicate the smoke- and tobacco-free campus policy to prospective employees and prospective students and their families prior to their visit to the University of Minnesota campus. 
    Response: I would like to let you know that the University of Minnesota is a smoke- and tobacco-free campus. All students, staff, faculty, and visitors are prohibited from smoking and using tobacco products and electronic cigarettes on all University property. Thank you for respecting our policy.

To assist with enforcement: