Students voiced their opinions last week when they voted on three referendums in UOSA elections.
Referendums do not have any force of law, but rather are used to express the student body’s will for Student Congress representatives and university officials to take into account when making policy decisions.
Drug Policy
Students approved creating a separate drug policy with 37 percent of the vote.
The new policy would supplement the alcohol policy enacted five years ago, Spencer Pittman, author of the referendum, said.
Pittman, a criminology junior, said a new narcotics policy would also have a three-strikes rule, similar to the alcohol policy.
He said drug abuse — especially of prescriptions like Adderral and Ritalin — are extremely prevalent on campus, and should be regulated as much as alcohol.
Pittman said the reform is being written now and has to go through judicial affairs before it becomes policy.
Smoking Policy
A plurality of students also voted for a campus wide smoking ban with 49 percent of the vote.
The ban would cover campus from Lindsey Street to Boyd Street and Jenkins Avenue to Elm Avenue, the referendum’s author, Joe Ahrabizad said.
The ban would exclude Greek houses and dorms, Ahrabizad said.
Students complaints that smokers were not abiding by the ban on smoking within 25 feet of doors prompted the referendum, Aharabizad, physical science junior, said.
“I was really excited,” Ahrabizad said. “I really wanted to see that option succeed.”
The ban may become policy as early as next semester, he said. The student code committee must change the student code and then get approval from the OU Board of Regents.
Adding Sexual Orientation to Non-Discrimination Policy
Students also overwhelmingly approved adding sexual orientation to the non-discrimination clause with 73 percent of the votes.
The current discrimination policy does not apply to gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender people. The referendum’s author, Nick Harrison, said the addition fits well with other items in the non-discrimination clause.
Rosie Lynch, the chair of the student advisory board, said sexual orientation should be added to non-discrimination clauses across the state, Harrison said.
“I think it’s definitely a good measure of the students’ opinion on this issue,” Harrison said. “It’s reassuring and inspiring that they want to support this idea.”
Harrison said he plans to push UOSA president-elect Katie Fox to move towards adding the amendment to the clause.
Referendum Results
Referendum regarding whether to include sexual orientation in the UOSA Constitution discrimination policy
• 1,640 voted Yes
• 611 voted No
Referendum regarding a student drug policy on campus
• 818 voted to create seperate policy entitled “Student Drug Policy”
• 739 voted to make no changes to current policy
• 652 voted to conjoin drug and alcohol policy into “Student Alcohol and Drug Policy”
Referendum regarding smoking on campus
• 1,221 voted for a complete ban on smoking on campus
• 710 voted for a partial ban on smoking in certain areas of campus
• 555 voted for no further restrictions on smoking on campus
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jssooner4 3 years, 1 month ago
If you were worried about possible referendums being passed that you disagree with, then maybe you should have simply voted. It is not the OUdaily's fault that you chose not to vote. All you had to do was open a web page. Next time, I suggest rather than hope someone tells you whether you should care or not, you should just care.
TheJR 3 years, 1 month ago
It still shocks (and disappoints) me that the Daily didn't cover these referendums in detail prior to the vote to enact them. Banning smoking at most locations on campus is a pretty big deal.
JJanowiak 3 years, 1 month ago
The OU Daily is over a week late on this news, which is doubly inexcusable considering all the complaints that readers have made specifically about it.
Kaolson 3 years, 1 month ago
I share the sentiment of disappointment. If I knew about the referendums I absolutely would have voted and know many students that would have done the same. I feel personally outraged (as should anyone that cares about the issue one way or another) that I am only hearing about an issue as substantial as a referendum banning smoking after the fact.
I believe that part of the Daily's responsibility includes maximizing the visibility of opportunities for students to voice their opinion. While the responsibility may not lie solely upon the shoulders of the Daily (it would have been nice to see people on the south oval telling you to vote yes/no on some of the referendum issues instead of vote for), I think the lack of coverage marks a significant failure for the Daily this spring.
pitt1970 3 years, 1 month ago
The OU Daily should have a writer sitting in on every Congress meeting. Maybe then they will be more informed of the bills/referendums that are being discussed. Putting them in the OU Daily a WEEK after, now considered old-news, it unacceptable.
libertarian 3 years, 1 month ago
I voted against the smoking ban, but the first time I saw that it was up for a vote was when I clicked on the elections website. It's pretty pathetic that Student Congress and the Daily can't get together here to publicize this stuff.