Norwood High School Implements Total Smoking Ban-This Day In Norwood History-July 3, 1985

he Norwood School Committee took definitive action during its meeting on the evening of July 2, 1985, voting unanimously to implement a comprehensive ban on smoking at Norwood High School.

T The new policy, which is scheduled to take effect in September, marks a significant shift in school regulations, moving away from previous allowances toward a strictly smoke-free environment. Principal John Piccirilli emphasized that the decision was driven primarily by health concerns for the student body. “We’ve got to show students that it (smoking) is not the way to go,” Piccirilli stated during the meeting.

Prior to the formal vote, the school administration gathered data on student habits and regional trends. Piccirilli reported that approximately 15 to 18 percent of the students at Norwood High School were active smokers at the time of the proposal. In formulating the new policy, the administration looked toward surrounding districts that had already pioneered similar restrictions. According to Piccirilli, smoking was already prohibited at both Milton High School and Needham High School, and the policy had proven successful in those settings. Other towns were also moving toward similar measures; Foxboro was prepared to implement a smoking ban for freshmen, sophomores, and students under the age of 16 on its school grounds starting in the fall.

The path to the Norwood ban involved significant community input. A committee composed of teachers, department heads, students, and parents was specifically charged with studying the prevalence and impact of smoking within the school environment. This committee ultimately recommended the total ban, a stance that was further supported by Norwood School Superintendent James R. Savage. With the recommendation formally presented to the School Committee, the members provided their unanimous approval, signaling a unified approach to promoting student health and changing the culture within the high school. The move reflects a growing trend in Massachusetts during the mid-1980s to limit tobacco use in public educational institutions, prioritizing long-term health education over the traditional permissive policies of previous decades.

Archival Note: This article has been dynamically reconstructed from the original public record print archives of the Patriot Ledger