Prohibiting Tobacco Sponsorship in College Based Organizations

College-age students are the youngest group of Americans legally targeted by the marketing campaigns of the tobacco industry.

Since the adoption of the Master Settlement Agreement in 1998, tobacco companies have specifically targeted young adults (aged 18-24) through both advertising and sponsorship opportunities. One of the most efficient ways for the tobacco industry to reach this target marketing group is through sponsorship of popular college-based organizations such as sororities and fraternities.

With these factors in mind, ChangeLab Solutions designed the attached model tobacco sponsorship policies to be used by fraternities and sororities wishing to prohibit or discourage acceptance of tobacco sponsorship and funding for group events or activities. 

There are two versions of the policy:

• The “National Greek Charter/Local Chapter Model Resolution on Tobacco Industry Sponsorship” is a binding policy prohibiting tobacco industry sponsorship if passed by an individual charter or chapter of a fraternity or sorority.
• The “National and Local Panhellenic Conference Model Recommendation on Tobacco Industry Sponsorship” is a non-binding policy to be passed by a national or local panhellenic board, encouraging its members (e.g., individual fraternities and sororities) to adopt a policy against the acceptance of tobacco sponsorship.

Both policies involve strictly voluntary decisions by private organizations and are thus highly unlikely to raise legal questions or problems.