ATLANTA, Nov. 14, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The American
Cancer Society and the CVS Health Foundation today awarded grants
to 20 U.S. colleges and universities as part of their Tobacco-Free
Generation Campus Initiative (TFGCI), a $3.6
million multi-year program intended to accelerate and expand
the adoption and implementation of 100 percent smoke- and
tobacco-free campus policies. The announcement coincides this week
with the American Cancer Society Great American Smokeout.
Experience the interactive Multimedia News Release here:
http://www.multivu.com/players/English/7963951-cvs-health-tobacco-free-campus
The Tobacco-Free Generation Campus Initiative is part of Be
The First, CVS Health's five-year, $50
million initiative that supports education, advocacy,
tobacco control, and healthy behavior programming to help deliver
the nation's first tobacco-free generation. CVS Health has set
actionable and measurable goals for Be The First, including
a doubling of the number of tobacco-free college and university
campuses in the United States.
"With our partners at CVS Health, we are excited to support the
efforts of many dedicated students, faculty and staff to make their
campuses smoke- and tobacco-free using proven strategies that will
also reduce tobacco use among students," said Gary M. Reedy, Chief Executive Officer for the
American Cancer Society. "To be successful in creating a
tobacco-free generation, it is important that we prevent and
eliminate lethal and addictive tobacco use among college
students."
The American Cancer Society Great American Smokeout will take
place on Thursday, November 17. The
annual intervention effort encourages smokers to quit for a day,
quit for good, or make a plan to quit, and raises awareness around
the many tools and resources they can use to help them quit.
Grant Recipients from Coast to Coast
Over the next three years, the Tobacco-Free Generation Campus
Initiative will award grants to a total of 125 colleges and
universities throughout the U.S. with the greatest need for
stronger tobacco prevention and control. The grants will help
schools successfully advocate for, adopt and implement 100 percent
smoke- and tobacco-free campus policies. Campuses will also receive
technical assistance and resources to support their efforts with
education, communications, cessation, and evaluation.
The University of Pennsylvania is
one of the first 20 grant recipients, and is working towards
becoming the first Ivy League
institution to adopt a 100 percent tobacco-free campus policy.
"We are grateful to be among the recipients of the American
Cancer Society/CVS Health Foundation tobacco control grant as it
recognizes and supports Penn's
commitment to a tobacco-free campus," said Penn President Amy
Gutmann. "Under the leadership of Penn pulmonologist Frank
Leone, we have developed an innovative, interdisciplinary
approach to smoking cessation that has yielded unprecedented
success in just two years. Frank
Leone and his colleagues understand the complexity of the
problem of tobacco dependence and the need to take a long-term view
to change tobacco behaviors. This generous grant will greatly aid
the University's ongoing efforts to effectively address this major
public health epidemic."
Other grant recipients include: Bowling
Green State University (Ohio), California State
University San Marcos, Davenport
University (Mich.), East Carolina
University (N.C.), El Paso Community
College (Texas),
Indiana University – Bloomington, Lenoir-Rhyne University (N.C.),
Merritt College (Calif.), Montclair State University (N.J.), Oakland University (Mich.), Penn State University (Pa.), Piedmont Community College (N.C.),
Saint Mary's College of California,
Springfield College (Mass.),
St. Xavier University (Ill.),
Texas Christian University,
Texas A&M University - Corpus
Christi, University of
Cincinnati Blue Ash College (Ohio) and University of
Michigan.
Public Support for Tobacco Control on Campus
TFGCI grants are intended to address a critical, unmet need by
supporting efforts to advocate for, establish and institute smoke-
and tobacco-free campus policies. The U.S. Department of Education
reports there are approximately 4,700 institutions of higher
education in the United States.
According to the Americans for Nonsmokers' Rights Foundation, only
1,427 campuses are 100-percent smoke- and tobacco-free. That
reflects major progress over earlier years, but much remains to be
done.
According to a new national Morning Consult poll of 2,202
registered voters commissioned by CVS Health on October 12-18 2016, there is strong public
support for addressing the continued impact of tobacco use on
college and university campuses. Among the key poll findings:
- Seventy-six-percent of Americans think youth smoking and/or
tobacco use is a problem. Similarly, 69% of Americans think college
student smoking and/or tobacco use is a problem.
- More than half of Americans (56%) think the number of
tobacco-free campuses is too low. This is similar among U.S.
college students where the combined percentage is 54 percent.
- Three-quarters (75%) of Americans support policies that
prohibit smoking and other tobacco use on college campuses.
- Fifty-two percent of Americans think whether or not a campus is
tobacco-free is an important consideration when applying to, and
potentially attending, a college/university, ranking behind
academic quality (86%) and quality of housing (79%), but ahead of
how competitive athletic teams are (38%).
"We're at a critical moment in our nation's efforts to end the
epidemic of smoking and tobacco use, and expanding the number of
tobacco-free college and university campuses is an important step
in our efforts," said Troyen A. Brennan, M.D., M.P.H., and Chief
Medical Officer for CVS Health. "We're confident our strategy
will drive a significant decline in the number of new college-age
smokers, and contribute to the progress being made where a
tobacco-free generation in the U.S. seems possible."
Accepting Applications for New Grants
In partnership with the CVS Health Foundation, the American
Cancer Society will begin accepting online applications for the
next round of Tobacco-Free Generation Initiative (TFGCI) grants.
The fall grant cycle will run through February 28, 2017 with the names of grant
recipients to be announced in May
2017.
In addition to grants, colleges and universities will receive
technical assistance throughout the tobacco-free policy planning
and implementation process. Technical assistance will be provided
through webinars, online resources and limited one-on-one
consultations.
To learn more about the Tobacco-Free Generation Campus
Initiative (TFGCI), U.S. colleges and universities are encouraged
to visit www.CVSHealth.com/tobaccofreecampus. To apply for a TFGCI
grant, visit www.cancer.org/tfgci.
About The American Cancer Society
The American Cancer
Society is a global grassroots force of 2 million volunteers saving
lives in every community. As the largest voluntary health
organization, the Society's efforts have contributed to a 23
percent decline in cancer death rates in the U.S. since 1991, and a
50 percent drop in smoking rates. We're finding cures as the
nation's largest private, not-for-profit investor in cancer
research, ensuring people facing cancer have the help they need and
continuing the fight for access to quality health care, lifesaving
screenings and more. For more information, to get help, or to join
the fight, call us anytime, day or night, at (800) 227-2345 or
visit cancer.org.
About the CVS Health Foundation
The CVS Health
Foundation is a private charitable organization created by CVS
Health (NYSE:CVS) that works to build healthier communities,
enabling people of all ages to lead healthy, productive lives. The
Foundation provides strategic investments to nonprofit partners
throughout the U.S. who help increase community-based access to
health care for underserved populations, create innovative
approaches to chronic disease management and provide tobacco
cessation and youth prevention programming. We also invest in
scholarship programs that open the pathways to careers in pharmacy
to support the academic aspirations of the best and brightest
talent in the industry. Our philanthropy also extends to supporting
our colleagues' spirit of volunteerism through Volunteer Challenge
grants to nonprofits where they donate their time and fundraising
efforts. To learn more about the CVS Health Foundation and its
giving, visit www.cvshealth.com/social-responsibility.
FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:
American Cancer
Society: Charaighn Sesock, 559.972.4877,
charaighn.sesock@cancer.org
CVS Health: Joe Goode, 401.770.9820,
jlgoode@cvs.com
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SOURCE CVS Health