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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (April 28, 1989)
.Community Area high schools push for smoke-free policy By Befsy Clayton Emerald Associate Editor North Eugene students can't smoke on campus anymore — and it doesn't seem to bother them. Since the administration closed the student smoking area four years ago, the number of student smokers has all but disappeared. North Eugene was the first 4 | District high school to ban student smoking on school grounds, and its administra tors' decision set the agenda for other schools to follow Although North students fa vored the closure, other local student body reactions varied from some not caring at all to others causing problems with off-campus smoking. Currently Sheldon High School stands alone in having a student smoking area It was re opened spring term this year — after being closed In for two years — with the support of the principal and student body. South Eugene High School banned student smoking in 1987 and Churchill High School eliminated its area last fall. Springfield and Thurston, high schools fall under a Springfield School District policy that has not allowed smoking areas for more than 15 years. Sheldon High School Princi pal |im Eord's decision to allow student smoking on campus has made many 4-j administra tors and school hoard members do double takes. "Every school has a smoking area whether they admit it or not. if it's not on the grounds, it's one step off campus." Ford said. Ford, who was transferred to Sheldon last fall, said Shel don's best image isn't projected when students are forced to leave campus to smoke. Shel don has a wooded area behind it that makes it difficult for stu dents to smoke on off school grounds behind the building students have to go in front of the school. "Anyone driving into the parking lot sees this." Ford said. Residential areas sur round Sheldon and smoking in front of the school often farthers neighbors. "I'd get calls once a week to the tune of ‘get these kids out of the yard.' " Ford said. The reopened smoking area is on the side of the building near the faculty parking lot. "When it rains, they get wet I’m not building a shelter to protect them." Ford said. Ford said his strongest criti cism has come from those who ask how he can condone smok ing among students. He said he sent out 1,300 community sur veys in November and received seven responses He also put the issue before the Parent Ad visory Council for two months. Discussion ended in a split de cision, but Ford felt the com munity would support his deci sion. The new smoking privileges have restrictions, however. Stu dents need permission slips from their parents to use the area and smoking times are only before school, during break and lunch, and 15 min utes after school. The campus supervisor is present at all these times to police the area for drug use. possible conflicts and extensive garbage. Students who are smoking without jmrinission slips filed in the office are suspended for one (Jay Ford said he doesn’t like the idea of student smoking any more than anyone else, but he thinks he’s making the i»est of a laid situation. Divine Decadence A * I H A GET Youi FREE 60 o/. Birthday Drink H'M wmM «1. >, i and KEEP the Glass DANCI SPIRITS VIDFO MUSIC 959 Pearl (downstairs) Eugene 683-2360 We .in' .in ;»i|em,ilive ii<f • ! ul‘ rul .Hi .in* weu . Plate Ian Mark* Student* from South Eugene High School must cram the street to smoke as administrators have banned smoking on school grounds Student smoking off campus has caused some problems for South Eugene High School be cause property owners near the school are not happy with the garbage the students leave be hind. The administration eliminat ed the smoking area two years ago because school health classes tell students it's bad. yet it is still an allowed habit on campus, said Assistant Prin cipal Wanda Johnson. Beyond that, however. John son said the problem was the garbage. "It was always filthy. Students would clean it occa sionally if we threatened to close it down, but that was the only time.” she said. Many students now cross 19th Avenue to smoke at the Lane Transit District bus stop or the corner of lttth Avenue and High Street. Johnson said property own ers often talk to the students and complain to the school about the garbage. "The managers think the kids are thrashing the area Ire cause there isn’t a smoking area at South. The kids think if there is enough ruckus, then we ll change and give the area back." Johnson said. "I don't think the school will bow to that." In mid-April, a student who was on 19th Avenue to smoke got in a "shoving match” with an apartment manager, Johnson said. Police were called to the scene and the conflict was quickly dissolved. “The fight was due to the fact that there is too much gar bage there and when the guy said something the kid proba bly mouthed off," Johnson said. The administrators decided side walk and the street is pub lic property, but the owner of the property adjacent to the strip is in charge of its upkeep. When too much tension and too many complaints reach a peak in one area, then students find some place else to go hang out and smoke for a while, Johnson said. Problems at Churchill High School have been minimal — “There is no good answer. Our school is not represented well when they hang out and smoke and folks drive by and see. When we have it on campus, it's hidden from drivers, but then...we're supporting the activity ” -Bob Moursund to reopen a small grass area near the east parking lot to let the incident clear the air, but bannod student smoking again three school days later. Another incident of conflict between a student and a prop erty owner led to a student uri nating on the owner’s building to protest the owner telling stu dents to clean up. Johnson said the problem with the High Street area is that the strip of lawn between the Coupon Modlest*te i StudLo 112 E. 13th Ave., Eugene Quality Portraits for the College Graduate FREE STUDIO SESSION A ! : : . . s.i. • ; . ■■■ PuHtails •; f .nil. A f all'! Mrsunir-s Call Today 683*4574 10 am 6 pm Tues Sal Coupon maybe nonexistent — with stu dent smoking both before the area was eliminated and after. Assistant Principal Bob Moursund said when the area existed it wasn't used by more than a dozen student smokers anyway. Different groups of students not wanting to associate with one another led many smokers to leave campus. Moursund said. 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