RDC establishes cannabis free policy across campuses

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Red Deer College, like all post-secondary institutions across the country, has had to carefully consider our position about cannabis use on campus. After looking at what this means for RDC and all of the people who use our campuses, we have established that RDC will be cannabis free across our campuses, including all Residence units.

We have a diverse population of people of all ages who are at our campuses each day, and we also know that we will have equally diverse opinions about the decision for RDC to be completely cannabis free.

To provide background on this decision:

  • RDC’s campuses are subject to City of Red Deer bylaws, including the recently updated Smoke Free Bylaw, which prohibits consuming cannabis in public, including smoking and vaping cannabis.
  • This bylaw applies to all areas of campus except our Residence units. As a landlord, RDC has jurisdiction under the Residential Tenancies Act of Alberta to decide whether or not to allow cannabis use in Residence. RDC is banning cannabis use and consumption in Residence because we believe it is the best way to serve the health, safety and wellness needs of all people living in Residence, including families and children.
  • Safety is another important factor, as students, faculty and staff all operate and use a wide variety of potential safety hazards in our shops and labs. We want to provide a safe place for people to learn, work and have success at RDC.

The new Cannabis on Campus Policy has been created to address our position. Additional details are also available on the Cannabis on Campus page on RDC’s website and on the Health, Safety & Wellness page on TheLoop.

The legalization of cannabis in Canada is new for our society, and RDC has made the decision to be cannabis free because we believe it is in the best interest of our College community. We want to provide a safe place for people of all ages to learn, work and live, and creating a cannabis free campus is another way to achieve this.

 

If you have questions, please contact me at [email protected] or at 403.314.2472.