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November 26, 2001
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Employee Council debates campus smoking issues By Eric Rangus erangus@emory.edu
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Much of the Employee Council’s Nov. 14 meeting in Harland Cinema
focused on the issue of smoking on campus. The council is formulating
a statement for presentation to the University Senate specifying its recommendations
on smoking and non-smoking areas at Emory. A variety of proposals from all over the University (not just within
the Employee Council) have been discussed, including one that would make
the campus entirely smoke-free. One of the guest speakers at the meeting, Glenn Allen, a second-year
student in the Rollins School of Public Health, discussed a web-based
smoking survey that gauges the effect a smoke-free environment would have
at Emory. “That is not on my agenda,” said council President Bill McBride,
referring to the issue of a completely smoke-free campus. “But I
am very interested in this survey and how it is being done.” Allen said he helping put together a report for a self-appointed six-person
committee consisting of four employees of the DeKalb County Board of Health
and two Emory faculty members—Clyde Partin, professor of health,
physical education and dance, and Susan Butler, research assistant professor
of behavioral sciences and health education—that will explore changing
Emory’s smoking policy, which was introduced in 1988. Allen said
he will report to that committee by Dec. 3 and compile a report outlining
the committee’s goals. The survey is available to anyone, but the website was mailed specifically
to certain organizations like the Employee Council, University Senate
and the Student Government Association. “We are hoping to get a snapshot of the community,” Allen said. Council members were encouraged to share the anonymous survey with their
constituents. Continuing the smoking discussion in committee meetings, several plans
were discussed. In fact, the special issues committee turned into one
large discussion group as members of the communications and membership
committees joined in. While ideas for smoking rooms inside buildings and smoke-free barriers
outside entrances were suggested, a consensus agreed that designated,
covered areas outside buildings would be the most agreeable solution. “A lot of people are thinking about this, and they are looking to
see what Employee Council comes up with,” McBride said. Once the council comes up with a concrete plan, it will be formally brought
to the floor of the University Senate. Several other subjects were discussed during the meeting. James Johnson
of Facilities Management discussed the Open Space Project, part of the
Campus Master Plan. He said 14 Open Space projects are planned through
2005. One that received quite a few questions was the plan to reroute
Fishburne Drive to accommodate expansion at the Goizueta Business School. Julia Leon, co-chair of the special issues committee, discussed servant
leadership brown bags, which the council has sponsored for several months.
The events have been successful, but she asked for more council participation.
One idea would rotate the responsibility for hosting brown bags on a committee
basis. It received some support and will be further discussed at the next
executive committee meeting. Finally, Laquanda Jackson, cochair of the membership committee, said
she would be accepting nominations for 2002–03 officer positions
beginning now and running through Jan. 4. Positions up for election are:
president-elect, secretary-elect, treasurer, historian and parliamentarian.
Candidate biographies will be distributed at the January meeting, and
the election will take place in February. Self-nominations are encouraged. The next Employee Council meeting will be held Wednesday, Dec. 12, in the Jones Room of Woodruff Library.
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