MOUNT PLEASANT, MI —

As of July 2014, students and employees can no longer smoke on Central Michigan University's campus.

The university is adopting a

banning tobacco products both indoors and outdoors.

“The health and well-being of all students and employees is a top priority,” President George Ross said. “We want to provide everyone with a chance to attend school, live and work in a safe and healthy environment.”

CMU officials conducted a campuswide survey in February, and 70 percent of the 4,700 respondents supported a smoke-free campus.

The new policy bans

traditional cigarettes, e-cigarettes, chewing tobacco, pipes, cigars, hookahs, waterpipes, snus and snuff. Snus is similar to chewing tobacco. CMU will allow some exceptions for

theatrical productions, as well as religious rituals, ceremonies and cultural and ethnic events.

The only tobacco use allowed on campus is in privately-owned vehicles with closed windows.

“The tobacco-free policy was created with input from a work group that included representatives from each employee group on campus, as well as representation from the Student Government Association and Residence Hall Assembly,” said Lori Hella, associate vice president of human resources. “It’s going to make CMU’s campus a cleaner, healthier place.”

Hella said CMU community members will enforce the policy by asking anyone using tobacco products of the ban.

With the smoke-free policy, CMU joins about 800 tobacco-free colleges and universities in the U.S. Saginaw Valley State University, Delta College, the University of Michigan and Michigan Technological University have smoking bans, among other Michigan colleges.

Until July, students and employees can continue to smoke a minimum of 25 feet from entrances, exits, air intake ducts or windows of university buildings. That policy, which also prohibits smoking indoors, has been in effect since 1992.

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Lindsay Knake covers education for MLive/The Saginaw News. Follow her on twitter or contact her at 989-372-2498 or lknake@mlive.com.