As the spring semester rolls around, a new year calls for new goals for Montclair State University. One of those goals include becoming a smoke-free campus by September 2020.
The university sent out a campus-wide email informing students and faculty on the newly banned smoking areas in effect as of Jan. 2.
The locations now smoke-free are the following:
- Russ Hall between Russ Hall and Chapin Hall near the loading dock for Chapin Hall
- Blanton Hall in between Webster Hall and Bohn Hall
Junior psychology major Dana Mellon does not believe the smoke-free mission is going to do anything about students smoking on campus.
“Banning designated smoking areas is a waste of time because students will smoke wherever and whenever they want on campus,” Mellon said. “Banning the areas may even result in more widespread smoking rather than in a designated area.”
The campus-wide email also gave a timeline of other locations set to become smoke-free in the following year and a half.
Junior criminal justice major Orlando Flores is skeptical of Montclair State pulling off its goal of a smoke-free campus by 2020.
“Honestly, I doubt [they will accomplish their goal] because there’s so many different things used to smoke, such as juuls, vape pens [and] there’s weed,” Flores said. “I think there’s too many different smoking devices that are going to be almost impossible to stop by 2020. But eventually, I think there will be a time where they’ll be able to achieve [their goal].”
By September 2019, the amphitheater in between Sprague Library and Kasser Theater along University Promenade, and Hawk Crossings between Falco Hall and Accipiter Hall will also be removed as smoking areas.
