Effective in August, Moorpark College will become a tobacco, smoke and vapor free campus.

Currently, the school has designated parking lots B, F and PA as acceptable areas for students to smoke and vape. However, the Safety and Wellness Committee has been working toward the legislation for years and their efforts will finally materialize this upcoming fall.

Allison Barton, the student health educator, has worked on the committee for years and believes the new policy is vital to the air quality of the college. Moreover, she acknowledges secondhand smoke as a major issue on campus, while also fearing for the safety of the preschoolers in the Child Development Center.

“The children on campus like to pick things up from the ground and may even put them in their mouth, so fallen cigarette butts can hurt the kids,” said Barton.

Barton views the policy as a wake-up call for student smokers planning to transfer to University of California and California State University as all the campuses are also tobacco, vape and smoke free. Furthermore, Barton explained that California government officials are currently reviewing legislation to make all public schools in the state tobacco free. Smoking concerns are especially prevalent in California as the state is frequently in drought and fire conditions.

Barton stated there has been little pushback and even current smokers agree with the new legislation.

However, the B-parking lot behind Fountain Hall, which serves as current hangout for smokers, provides a different opinion. One mention of the new law leads to a out-pour of profanity. Philip Morton, 21 year-old psychology major, believes he has a right to smoke.

“I think there should be at least one section for it because this is a big campus that needs to appeal to all,” said Morton.

The student smokers in the B-parking lot agreed with Morton. They explained that the college should account for every individual on campus and not just the majority.

School officials understand that the policy will take time to be fully accepted. Sharon Manakas, the student health coordinator, believes that over time that the legislation will be enforced and established on campus.

“Change takes times and we’re hoping for student’s cooperation with this policy,” said Manakas.

Manakas stated that the new legislation will be socially enforced by all the faculty and students. Anybody who happens to see someone smoking can report them to an administrator or campus police.

These individuals will first give out a warning, if the smoker fails to comply, they will receive a student code of conduct citation and be required to watch a video and talk to an administrator. Students who are caught more than once will be entered under the BIT report. The BIT, behavioral intervention team, will meet with the student and figure out the next possible step.

Manakas aspires for the college to provide a safe learning environment for every student and believes that the current structure will be enough to convince them to not smoke or vape on campus.

“My hope is that we can change a culture, and some colleges are give out fines, but my hope is that Moorpark College does not have to go that route,” said Manakas.