| Overall Rating | Gold |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 81.87 |
| Liaison | Rania Assariotaki |
| Submission Date | Feb. 21, 2023 |
The American College of Greece
PA-14: Wellness Program
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
1.00 / 1.00 |
Ourania
Assariotaki Director Office of Sustainability |
"---"
indicates that no data was submitted for this field
Part 1. Wellness program
Yes
Does the institution have a wellness and/or employee assistance program that makes counseling, referral, and wellbeing services available to all academic staff?:
Yes
Does the institution have a wellness and/or employee assistance program that makes counseling, referral, and wellbeing services available to all non-academic staff?:
Yes
A brief description of the institution’s wellness and/or employee assistance program(s):
The American College of Greece provides free access to its athletic facilities (Fitness Center, Swimming Pool) to all the members of the Community, including students, faculty and staff. The College employees could exercise themselves, keep fit, relax and reduce daily stress. Students could also join Deree’s sport teams, in the context of the Intercollegiate Athletics Program where they could cultivate the values of cooperation, dedication, effort and fair play.
The ACG has established a Counseling Center aims to support, encourage, educate, counsel, and empower students in a college setting as they adjust to the challenges and transitions of university life as well as help faculty and staff function more effectively in their work with students. Besides, ACG provides educational psychologist’s services to students who cope with learning difficulties in order to assist them alleviate this issues and enhance learning.
The College has implementing a No Smoking Policy in order to promote the well-being of its employees. The Office of Human Resources strongly encourages employees to give up smoking and to adopt a healthier lifestyle for their own benefit and for the Community’s benefit as a whole. Since the implementation of the no smoking policy, the College’s Administration has been funding employees for their efforts to stop smoking. In a time of financial hardship, the College has been contributing directly to the reduction of the relative cost of therapy. Employees have been choosing their preferred method to quit smoking (like acupuncture, chewing gum, prescribed pills, psychological support from experts) and the College has been undertaking to pay 50% of the treatment for up to 500 euros per person (always cleared through the payroll).
The ACG has established a Counseling Center aims to support, encourage, educate, counsel, and empower students in a college setting as they adjust to the challenges and transitions of university life as well as help faculty and staff function more effectively in their work with students. Besides, ACG provides educational psychologist’s services to students who cope with learning difficulties in order to assist them alleviate this issues and enhance learning.
The College has implementing a No Smoking Policy in order to promote the well-being of its employees. The Office of Human Resources strongly encourages employees to give up smoking and to adopt a healthier lifestyle for their own benefit and for the Community’s benefit as a whole. Since the implementation of the no smoking policy, the College’s Administration has been funding employees for their efforts to stop smoking. In a time of financial hardship, the College has been contributing directly to the reduction of the relative cost of therapy. Employees have been choosing their preferred method to quit smoking (like acupuncture, chewing gum, prescribed pills, psychological support from experts) and the College has been undertaking to pay 50% of the treatment for up to 500 euros per person (always cleared through the payroll).
Part 2. Smoke-free environments
Yes
Does the institution restrict outdoor smoking?:
Yes
Does the institution prohibit smoking and tobacco use across the entire campus?:
Yes
A copy of the institution's smoke-free policy:
The institution’s smoke-free policy:
Dear fellow members of the ACG community,
Please be informed that according to the ministerial decision provided in article 3 of the Greek Law No 3730/2008 regarding the prohibition of smoking and the provisions of said ministerial decision No 88202/2009 (published in the Government’s Gazette No 1286/B’/ 30.6.2009), smoking has been completely prohibited in all educational institutions and employment areas, since July 1, 2009.
In this context, we would like to remind you that all types of smoking, including vaping, are prohibited in all indoor and outdoor College areas. This applies to all ACG community members (students, faculty, staff and employees), as well as parents, alumni and guests across all divisions (Pierce, Deree, Alba).
As of September 1, 2019, the Office of Public Affairs and the ACG Institute of Public Health, in collaboration with our Marketing & Communications Department, will engage in a new awareness campaign, informing all ACG members of the relevant new policies and initiatives. New signage will be placed at all ACG campuses and buildings, reminding our community and external visitors that they are entering a smoke-free institution. For the duration of the 2019-2020 academic year, specially designed smoking cubicles will be placed at designated areas around the ACG campus and the ALBA building, where smokers will be permitted to smoke (see attached for a map of the designated smoking areas). Following this transition period, these designated areas will be removed, enforcing the law to the fullest extent.
Refraining from smoking promises short-term and long-term benefits for one’s health, including better taste and smell, better blood circulation which makes it easier to exercise, relief of shortness of breath and assurance of increase in energy levels, as well as a 50% reduction of the possibility of a heart attack or lung cancer. The ACG Administration, also in acknowledgement of the hazardous health effects due to exposure to passive smoking, will continue to support smokers to escape from the dependency of nicotine and to promote good health.
Responsibility for compliance with this policy rests to all of us. Going forward, although there could be penalties to ACG for non-compliance to the law, there will be no penalties imposed by the school to those who don’t comply. However, all ACG community members are encouraged to kindly urge fellow students, colleagues and guests to respect the law. The Office of Human Resources will continue to encourage employees to give up smoking and to support them in this effort, as it has been doing since the initial implementation of the no- smoking policy. Employees can continue to choose their preferred method to quit smoking (like acupuncture, chewing gum, prescribed pills, psychological support from experts) and the College will undertake to pay 50% of the treatment for up to 500 euros per person (always cleared through the payroll). Additionally, the ACG Institute of Public Health (IPH) will offer counselling support for free. All smokers who decide to give up smoking and take advantage of the College Administration’s policy should contact the Office of Human Resources (Mr. Hatzis at extension 1116) for further information.
Thank you for keeping our campus smoke-free!
Claudia Carydis Panagiotis Behrakis
VP, Public Affairs Director, ACG Institute of Public
Health
Please be informed that according to the ministerial decision provided in article 3 of the Greek Law No 3730/2008 regarding the prohibition of smoking and the provisions of said ministerial decision No 88202/2009 (published in the Government’s Gazette No 1286/B’/ 30.6.2009), smoking has been completely prohibited in all educational institutions and employment areas, since July 1, 2009.
In this context, we would like to remind you that all types of smoking, including vaping, are prohibited in all indoor and outdoor College areas. This applies to all ACG community members (students, faculty, staff and employees), as well as parents, alumni and guests across all divisions (Pierce, Deree, Alba).
As of September 1, 2019, the Office of Public Affairs and the ACG Institute of Public Health, in collaboration with our Marketing & Communications Department, will engage in a new awareness campaign, informing all ACG members of the relevant new policies and initiatives. New signage will be placed at all ACG campuses and buildings, reminding our community and external visitors that they are entering a smoke-free institution. For the duration of the 2019-2020 academic year, specially designed smoking cubicles will be placed at designated areas around the ACG campus and the ALBA building, where smokers will be permitted to smoke (see attached for a map of the designated smoking areas). Following this transition period, these designated areas will be removed, enforcing the law to the fullest extent.
Refraining from smoking promises short-term and long-term benefits for one’s health, including better taste and smell, better blood circulation which makes it easier to exercise, relief of shortness of breath and assurance of increase in energy levels, as well as a 50% reduction of the possibility of a heart attack or lung cancer. The ACG Administration, also in acknowledgement of the hazardous health effects due to exposure to passive smoking, will continue to support smokers to escape from the dependency of nicotine and to promote good health.
Responsibility for compliance with this policy rests to all of us. Going forward, although there could be penalties to ACG for non-compliance to the law, there will be no penalties imposed by the school to those who don’t comply. However, all ACG community members are encouraged to kindly urge fellow students, colleagues and guests to respect the law. The Office of Human Resources will continue to encourage employees to give up smoking and to support them in this effort, as it has been doing since the initial implementation of the no- smoking policy. Employees can continue to choose their preferred method to quit smoking (like acupuncture, chewing gum, prescribed pills, psychological support from experts) and the College will undertake to pay 50% of the treatment for up to 500 euros per person (always cleared through the payroll). Additionally, the ACG Institute of Public Health (IPH) will offer counselling support for free. All smokers who decide to give up smoking and take advantage of the College Administration’s policy should contact the Office of Human Resources (Mr. Hatzis at extension 1116) for further information.
Thank you for keeping our campus smoke-free!
Claudia Carydis Panagiotis Behrakis
VP, Public Affairs Director, ACG Institute of Public
Health
Optional Fields
Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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