By Angela Alfano
Staff Writer
From the steps of Humanities to the roof of Hillwood Commons, students and faculty can be seen smoking cigarettes on campus at LIU Post. Despite the best efforts of anti-smoking campaigns and the ever- rising cost of tobacco products, approximately one-third of college students smoke cigarettes or use tobacco-based products, according to a 2014 study by ABC News.
According to the LIU website, the current non-smoking policy on campus is dated from C.W. Post, circa 2011. The only forbidden place to smoke cigarettes is inside of a building. As long as a lit cigar or cigarette is not in a building all is right with the world. But what about the steps right outside of those buildings?
Students huddle in crowds of four to five, specifically in front of Humanities Hall, all smoking cigarettes. Students and faculty making their way from building to building must pass through or by the smokers to reach their destinations. There are no rules in place, which, for example, would define how far away one must be from the doors of a building to smoke.
“I guess smoking seems to be an accepted and a common thing on campus,” said Leah Fischman a sophomore Criminal Justice major. “Especially outside of Humanities between classes.”
Fischman recently quit smoking cigarettes and even when she would smoke, she said it would take place in her car, before her first class and after her last. She said that she did not smoke outside of buildings because of her awareness that many students on campus do not smoke and do not want to be exposed to secondary smoke. Fischman believes that smoking is widely accepted and tolerated on campus, however as a new non-smoker, she said she definitely notices smokers a lot more.
Some students on campus are not as accepting of smoking as others. Kaitlin Veygel, a junior Broadcasting major, is highly against smoking on campus. “I feel like if you choose to smoke, my lungs should not have to suffer,” Veygel said. “If you have to smoke on campus just do it in your car.”
The wonderful thing about America is that it is free. People on campus are free to smoke, for the most part, whenever they please. However, there should be more rules and regulations as to where smoking can take place. A rule as simple as five feet from an academic building would go a long way. Students who are non-smokers should not leave campus smelling as though they smoked a pack of Marlboro during the span of their day at school.
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