Revised smoking policies on PVCC’s Campus

Bryn Dotson, assistant editor

The popular trend of e-cigarettes has been around for a lot longer than one may think. The original concept of e-cigarettes was released in 1927, but the production of vapes did not begin until around 1963, according to VapingDaily.

As new forms of tobacco arise, and old ones stay in use, new policies have to be made. Similar to other modern trends, there is an appropriate time and place for everything, and on campus, the use of any tobacco product must be in designated smoking areas.

The new guidelines claim smoking, which is defined by the PVCC tobacco guidelines as “any tobacco product or other substance (including electronic or e-cigarettes or vapes) that emits smoke or is designed to simulate smoking cigarettes,” is allowed within designated smoking areas, in personal vehicles, and in the presence of smoking urns.

An important revision from the previous smoking policy is any form of tobacco, including “any smokeless tobacco, which includes chewing tobacco and snuff,” is not permitted outside of the designated smoking areas and is not permitted in class.

The revised policy stresses failure to comply can result in severe consequences, “These actions may include, but are not limited to, placing a hold on records, denying class registration, and submitting overdue obligations to the Virginia Department of Taxation debt set-off collection program.”

Students using tobacco outside of the assigned smoking areas will also  face a $25 fine.

“The purpose of this policy is to maintain the general well-being of the campus community while considering the needs of individuals who smoke and use tobacco,” said Kim McManus, vice president finance & administrative services.

For more information, please visit https://www.pvcc.edu/about-us/college-policies for all of the campus’s policies.