UND receives CEO Cancer Gold Standard accreditation The CEO Roundtable on Cancer has awarded the CEO Cancer Gold Standard to the University of North Dakota in recognition of UND's effort to improve the health of employees and reduce their risks of cancer. The CEO Cancer Gold Standard is awarded only after a company meets or exceeds the rigorous requirements set out by the CEO Roundtable on Cancer. Also receiving the CEO Cancer Gold Standard is Duke Medicine, affiliated with Duke University, and Valeant Pharmaceuticals. The announcement came on the same day that UND implemented a tobacco-free campus policy and just days after UND received two awards from the American Heart Association for promoting wellness on campus: a platinum level Fit-Friendly Company Award and a Workplace Fitness Innovation Award. "Wellness and healthful living have - particularly with the construction of the Student Wellness Center - become a theme at the University of North Dakota," said President Charles Kupchella. "Our wellness programs are now widely recognized both on campus and off. We want the University to serve as a support system for those wishing to live healthful lives and to model healthful living as an organization. We want a campus climate supportive of healthy choices. We see the implementation of a tobacco-free policy, for example, as part of our general charge to prepare our graduates for full, productive lives as professionals and as civic leaders." To earn a Gold Standard accreditation, a company or organization must establish programs to 1) reduce cancer risk through discouraging tobacco use, encouraging physical activity, and teaching diet and nutrition; 2) detect cancer at its earliest stages; and 3) provide access to quality care and clinical trials.