Implementing tobacco-free policies on university campuses has become increasingly common. However, promoting policy compliance remains a challenge. It is important to develop strategies that can overcome barriers to successful policy implementation and promote compliance. This Practice Note presents a case study of a practical strategy for addressing poor implementation of a newly adopted tobacco-free policy. Following principles of advocacy research, a team of student researchers and a faculty advisor developed a protocol to identify tobacco-related signage and environmental cues for tobacco use (e.g., cigarette-butt receptacles, designated smoking areas) on campus. Ten months after a tobacco-free campus policy went into effect, we identified 153 signs and 65 environmental cues. Of these, only two signs accurately described the current policy. Mapping signage and cues to use tobacco on campus can be an important advocacy tool to improve the implementation of tobacco-free campus policies. Increased adherence to new policies can be achieved through advocacy and outreach to university administrators.
Social media is an important tool for academic departments. Yet, with limited resources, many health promotion departments may not have the ability to conduct extensive planning or development of social media plans. This commentary reports the efforts of one undergraduate public health program to improve its social media presence. Faculty and students worked together to develop a social media plan, identify activities to implement the plan, and track social media follower counts on Instagram and Twitter in spring 2020. A logic model planning framework drove the process, and key learnings from efforts are presented. Departmental leaders may want to link students and faculty to generate student-driven content on social media. Leaders should recognize that advance planning is needed to maintain consistency, control account access, and be prepared to deal with problematic comments on social media. Suggested activities are presented in the hope they may inform other departments’ efforts. Department leaders and faculty may find they have much to learn from their students in this area.
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