Leeann Lokken grew tired of walking through a cloud of cigarette smoke on her way into academic halls, especially where smoking is prohibited.

So the senior helped create the UW-Eau Claire Clean Air Task Force at the beginning of the semester, which aims to reduce students’ exposure to secondhand smoke.

“I get frustrated when I walk into a building and see people standing in front of ‘No smoking’ signs smoking cigarettes,” Lokken said.

New this semester, the task force formed in conjunction with the Tobacco-Free Partnership of Eau Claire County, a branch of the Wisconsin Tobacco Board.

The campus task force consists of students, faculty, staff and the TFP coordinator.

Last spring, the Wisconsin Tobacco Board allocated money through TFP to a smoking cessation campaign at Eau Claire. Health Services and the Peer Health Educators developed the “You Know You Want To … Give It Up” campaign, as stated in a task force press release.

Based on a similar UW-Oshkosh campaign, Eau Claire’s effort consisted of four parts, beginning with a series of posters hung campus-wide displaying smoking statistics. Also included is an electronic student survey used to determine tobacco use and perceptions on campus.

Mannequins dressed in themed props were placed in the dorms, University Recreation and Hilltop Center. “Quit Kits” containing items used to aid the quitting process were distributed to students.

The task force has held one meeting this semester and plans for a second March 6.

Plans for this semester’s campaign are still in the early stages. In addition to the “Give It Up” theme, the “Breathe Clean Air” theme will be added to deal with secondhand smoke on campus, Lokken said.

“We wanted to be able to target more than just the tobacco users,” she said, “and everyone is affected by secondhand smoke.”

Nine out of 10 non-smoking Americans are exposed to secondhand smoke at least every two to three days, as stated in the Tobacco Control Resource Center for Wisconsin objective.

There is no “safe” level of exposure to secondhand smoke, according to the Tobacco Control Resource Center.

Campus buildings are smoke-free, and campus policy designates certain entrances as smoking entrances, Lokken said.

She found that students don’t always comply with the policy, and enforcement was not dealt with. This is where the task force will come into play.

“In order to deal with the policy and potentially change it, it needs to be student-driven,” Lokken said.

Building on last year’s activities, the Clean Air Task Force will begin to change university policies so that fewer people will be exposed to secondhand smoke.