By Kyle Waterman,
Marijuana use, or possession of the substance, can lead to the end of your educational career at any of the Community Colleges of Spokane.
Although marijuana is legal for recreational use in Washington State, the possession or consumption on campus can lead to expulsion.
“If we catch you, we will refer you,” said Ken DeMello, head of security at SFCC. “If you use it, you have violated a rule.”
Since it became legal, the use of marijuana has increased from 10.4 percent to 12.7 percent, according to a federal survey taken in 2014. This has caused an up-swell in security and law enforcement in the states where pot is legally consumed.
“We’ve been dealing with this issue more often than we did in the past,” DeMello said.
Washington Administrative Code 132Q-30-228 states that any form of marijuana, anywhere on campus, is prohibited, and the perpetrator will be referred by Campus Security to the Dean of Students to await further punishment.
According to WAC132Q,“Use, possession, manufacturing, or distribution of marijuana, narcotics, or other controlled substances and drug paraphernalia, except as expressly permitted by federal, state, and local law” is prohibited.
“I’m totally fine with the regulations on campus,” Megan Meyer,a student of SFCC, said.“Its distracting in the middle of class to smell marijuana.”
Once referred by security, you are brought to the Dean of Students where he can choose one of many options at his discretion. From WAC132Q, punishment can be dealt in many different ways: You can be let off with a warning, expelled, or even be sent to treatment if necessary.