After much heated discussion and several motions to end debate, EMU board members concluded Wednesday’s board meeting undecided about the sale of tobacco in the Erb Essentials store. But members voted to leave the issue on the table until the board can review information of other Pacific-10 schools that have banned tobacco sales.
The issue arose after biology Professor V. Pat Lombardi raised concerns that selling tobacco at the University conflicts with its mission and endangers students’ health. But the profit from tobacco sales is allocated to student groups on campus, and some board members worry that this money would be tough to do without. At the board meeting two weeks ago, members decided to hold off on a decision until they knew whether students on campus support selling tobacco.
By the end of Wednesday’s meeting, some board members were tired of the issue and ready to make a decision to sell or not to sell, while others still had many unanswered questions and
worried the board would make a decision too quickly.
EMU Board chairwoman Christa Shively said that although she was hoping to finalize the debate at Wednesday’s meeting, the only way for the board members to make a confident decision was to put the issue on hold until more information was found.
“I was hoping people would come prepared to make a decision to vote today, but I feel like we hit a gridlock,” she said.
At-large member Jake Holcombe suggested that the board should look at the fiscal situation of other universities that had banned tobacco sales to see how funding was
affected.
Shively said that while OSU had banned tobacco sales, it faced a financial loss of $4,000 — significantly less than the approximately $30,000 in profit the University makes each year. She said that because the University’s situation was much different, it is difficult to make a comparison between the schools.
But Holcombe argued that further research should be done before any decisions are made.
Health Education director Paula Straight said her biggest concern was that the board was focusing on whether to continue selling tobacco, rather than brainstorming alternative solutions to tobacco sales.
“What concerns me is that we aren’t brainstorming ideas for replacing the money,” she said.
Vice chair Jackie Reed suggested the board assign a business class the task of brainstorming ideas for how the University could compensate for lost revenue. She said tobacco sales could possibly be phased out after several years.
“Obviously the EMU is not prepared to ban tobacco now, but maybe in the future it is a possibility,” she said.
She also recommended the board conduct a schoolwide poll before making a decision that will affect students.
“(The board members) are only a small representative. Waiting for a survey to make our decision is not going to hurt anything,” she said.
But ASUO representative Brenda Tincher said the board’s job is to advocate for students, especially when the issue is complicated.
“I think a survey is just another delay to making a decision,” she said.
The board also discussed raising the cost of cigarettes to discourage students from buying cigarettes. Members discussed the possibility of funneling the money back to the EMU or using it to increase awareness about the health risks of smoking.