WASHINGTON – Germanna Community College is joining a growing list of colleges and universities that have banned e-cigarettes on campus.
Students learned over the weekend that the school had banned e-cigarettes via social media, says Mike Zitz, spokesman for Germanna. The community college has several campuses, the largest of which is in Frederickburg.
“We had gotten many positive comments. There were a few people who are vapors who were upset,” Zitz says.
About 600 colleges and universities nationwide have banned vaping, he says.
Instead of tobacco, e-cigs vaporize a nicotine liquid that the user vapes or inhales.
“The primary reason for the ban is we know it’s an annoyance to other students. We know it’s a distraction. We don’t know if it’s a health risk. But at this point we don’t want to take any chances.”
He says the college has banned vaping in class, in campus buildings and within 25 feet of a building’s entrance.
“Vaping has become something that’s become an irritant, an annoyance to many students that’s why we took the action,” says Zitz. Students have also complained that it smells.
Zitz says cigarette smoking was banned on campus 10 years ago due to the health dangers of second-hand smoke. Some believe that vapor smoking is safer than traditional cigarettes but the issue is still being studied.
Minors in Virginia and in Maryland cannot buy electronic cigarettes
