Tobacco-free resources available to students
LEXINGTON, Ky. (Dec. 11, 2023) — The University of Kentucky became completely tobacco-free on all campus grounds and parking areas in 2009, coinciding with the American Cancer Society's Great American Smokeout®. This includes electronic cigarettes and all vaping devices, which are classified as tobacco products, and are prohibited on campus.
UK supports its students who want to quit or cut back the use of tobacco products by offering a number of resources including:
- Individual cessation counseling: Cessation counseling sessions allow students to meet with treatment specialists to offer information and support on quitting options and develop a personalized quit plan which may include medications or behavior changes.
- To set up a health care provider appointment at University Health Services call 859-323-2778 for the provider appointment line and ask to be placed on Jodi Durbin’s schedule for smoking cessation.
- Free nicotine replacement patches, gum and lozenges: Students can meet with a treatment specialist to receive free nicotine replacement.
- Make an appointment by emailing fadyia.lowe@uky.edu or Elizabeth.finley@uky.edu.
- Quit Kits: Quit Kits are available in the POWER Unit in the Gatton Student Center and UHS outreach events and include resources to start your quit journey.
- Vape Text to Quit Line: Take advantage of our free Text to Quit Vape line to receive helpful information and tips on starting your quitting process. Text DROPVAPEBBN to 88709 to get started.
A full list of student resources can be found here.
Resources are also available for UK faculty and staff. Those resources can be found here.
As the state’s flagship, land-grant institution, the University of Kentucky exists to advance the Commonwealth. We do that by preparing the next generation of leaders — placing students at the heart of everything we do — and transforming the lives of Kentuckians through education, research and creative work, service and health care. We pride ourselves on being a catalyst for breakthroughs and a force for healing, a place where ingenuity unfolds. It's all made possible by our people — visionaries, disruptors and pioneers — who make up 200 academic programs, a $476.5 million research and development enterprise and a world-class medical center, all on one campus.
In 2022, UK was ranked by Forbes as one of the “Best Employers for New Grads” and named a “Diversity Champion” by INSIGHT into Diversity, a testament to our commitment to advance Kentucky and create a community of belonging for everyone. While our mission looks different in many ways than it did in 1865, the vision of service to our Commonwealth and the world remains the same. We are the University for Kentucky.