By Kyle Winslow

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg pledged to give $125 million of his own money to advance smoke-free causes in America earlier this month.

This unprecedented act will make an extraordinary difference in waning tobacco use across the country.

Last year, to improve air quality in Jefferson County, the city of Louisville banned smoking in nearly all public facilities, including the University of Louisville. The university, however, was already a largely smoke-free institution.

Smoking has been prohibited in residence halls for years, as well as most buildings on the university’s campuses.

U of L Fire Marshall Dwain Archer said he has not had many problems or complaints with the year-old ban. Students are allowed to smoke anywhere outside the buildings, but are asked “to be at least fifty feet away from the entrances,” Archer said.

This distance alleviates any threat of smoke entering any of the buildings.

Dr. Stanley Lee Ridner, an Assistant Professor at the U of L School of Nursing, helped conduct a health risk assessment at the university in the spring of 2005.

“The [percent] of current smokers (those who have smoked at least once in the past 30 days) on the University of Louisville campus was 21.5 percent. The national reference group was 22.1 percent during the time,” Ridner said.

The School of Nursing and the Health Services Office conducted the assessment with 810 randomly selected students.

Tyler Adams, a sophomore engineering major, is a smoker and said he sees no problem with the ban.

“I think that’s how it should be. I don’t think there should be smoking in any of the buildings.”

Although Adams tries to stay away from the entrances when he does smoke, he was unaware of the 50-foot requirement.

Some students believe that there should be more enforcement and designated areas where people can light up.

“I got a cookie and juice the other day and had to eat and walk because I could not sit near the Bingham Humanities building without choking from cigarette smoke,” said Dempsey Ballou, a sophomore engineering major. Ballou said he thinks students smoke too close to the buildings.

Pete Petroze, also a sophomore engineering major, said he agrees with Ballou. “I think the whole campus indoors and out should be entirely smoke free,” he said. “I don’t like passing smokers on my way to class and getting the smoke blown directly into my face.”

The university has made efforts to decrease the number of smokers among students and staff.

On Aug. 15, Campus Health Initiative began holding classes to help smokers quit at the Belknap campus.

The Kentucky Cancer Program is sponsoring the Cooper Clayton Smoking Cessation program at the Health Sciences campus. The program consists of 13 one-hour weekly sessions.

Sara Walsh, the program ccordinator, says the program is open to anyone. “We have a preference for Louisville students and staff, but we are open to the public,” she said.

The goal of this program is to help the attendees on their paths to becoming non-smokers.

“We advise them to come within the first week or two but if they cannot make it, we can always help them find another class,” Walsh said.

Seven people attended last week’s session, but more are encouraged to come to the second session tomorrow.