There is a dirty little open secret that has existed at Skyline College for years. If you are enrolled at the community college, chances are you have at one point or another had your nasal passages interact with the pungent smell of burning marijuana somewhere on campus. We all know marijuana and youths go together like Bic lighters and bongs, but students are so brazen about smoking the substance around the school, Jeff Spicoli is blushing somewhere right now.
“I’m not bothering anyone when I blaze a big L (marijuana rolled in a blunt) up at the View,” said a stoned student named Mike who wanted to remain anonymous. “It’s not like I go to class and start a ruckus. I think it actually helps me concentrate.”
The school, on the other hand, officially does not feel this way. According to the Skyline code of conduct, the use, possession, sale or distribution of narcotics or other drugs are subject to disciplinary action.
“If someone is caught using drugs, we will call the police,” said Brian Tupper, chief of security. “We will also file a report with the school about the incident.”
Despite the official stance of school security, it would appear teachers have an ambivalent attitude about kids arriving high to class. Math instructor Sue Broxholm kicked a student out of class only once for being “way too rambunctious and loud to keep in the classroom.”
“I notice when kids come to class high,” said Douglas Sherman, English professor. “But if they sit down and shut up, we don’t have a problem.”
The students at Skyline who don’t smoke pot have their own opinions on the matter.
“I don’t care; it doesn’t affect me,” said Skyline student Christine Morton. “If people choose to get high before class, that’s their decision, but maybe they should at least walk off campus or smoke in their cars out of respect for the school.”
Morton’s point seems to align with the opinion of the larger society, which greets marijuana usage by youths with a level of ambivalence even though it’s still an illegal drug. Many people feel the herb is a gateway drug for youths that can lead to a lifetime of struggle with addiction.
“Contrary to what politicians and the media would have you believe,” Professor Tony Jackson said, “there is no definitive proof that pot is a gateway drug or is addicting, but I’m not endorsing it either.”
One of the contributing factors in the rise of youths’ pot usage could be the media. Popular shows such as “Weeds” and role models such as Giants baseball player Tim Lincecum (who was caught by the police with one-eighth of pot) are examples of this.
When Prop 19 went on the ballot in 2010 to legalize the recreational use of small amounts of marijuana, it lost. However, the majority of 18–25-year-olds supported the measure. Debra Seiler, San Diego County Registrar, said that during the 2010 election, vote-polling places near San Diego State University, UC San Diego and Cal State San Marcos were either critically low or out of ballots because of the onslaught of students and young adults.
“Of course I voted for Prop 19,” said Karina Gertskova, Skyline student. “If alcohol is legal, people should have the right to smoke pot.”
Students’ smoking marijuana is not only a local phenomenon; other California colleges have a marijuana-smoking reputation as well. Oaksterdam University is dedicated solely to franchising legal weed, U.C. Santa Cruz has been documented as the birthplace of 4/20, Chico State was called the number-one party school by Maxim magazine, and Humboldt State is in an area of America known as the Emerald Triangle, where legal “medicinal” pot is grown by the tons.
“I just don’t see what the big deal is. Who hasn’t gotten stoned,” Morton said. “It’s only pot.”
