Smoking to Be Banned On All School Grounds

Come Jan. 1, Loudoun County public school employees will no longer be able to light up on campus.

The School Board voted 5 to 2 Tuesday to ban smoking on school property. Employees have been allowed to smoke in designated areas, out of view of students.

Most suburban Washington school systems have long had such policies. Fairfax and Montgomery counties have prohibited employees from smoking anywhere on school grounds since the 1990s.

Loudoun School Board Chairman Robert F. DuPree Jr. (Dulles), who proposed the idea a few months ago, said that the ban was inevitable and that the board's existing policy was more like a loophole.

"I have seen our world evolve into more and more of a smoke-free environment," he said. "I think we were going to do it; it was a question of when. It was time."

Board members said they set the Jan. 1 deadline to give smokers time to adjust and the district time to set up programs for those who want to quit. The policy does not include penalties for violating the ban.

Board member J. Warren Geurin (Sterling), who voted against the ban, said it is not the board's job to police people's habits.

"I don't think it's enforceable," Geurin said. "It's just one of those feel-good things. . . . It's three parts overzealous and two parts unenforceable."

Geurin said he has not heard any complaints about smokers, who have to go to a designated area to light up, usually a secluded spot in a parking lot or near a loading dock.

Geurin said the policy says nothing about penalties for ignoring the ban.

"It just wasn't well thought out," he said. "It's like we're saying, 'We're smarter than you, and we're going to make you healthy by golly or not.' "

Board Vice Chairman John Stevens (Potomac), who supported the ban, said he thought about the issue for a few weeks before making a decision. He said he was reluctant to interfere with private behavior that doesn't affect performance.

In the end, he said, it came down to being consistent and setting an example for young people.

"None of our students can legally use tobacco products," Stevens said. "I think it is a consistent practice for the adults to not use it on site."

The policy also fits in with the district's goals of encouraging health and wellness, DuPree said. He said he has not heard any complaints about the change.

"I don't think this is going to be an enormous factor for most people," he said. "A year from now, this is going to be a fact of life."