The latest word...
OHSU has made a decision to keep the March Wellness center open. It will apparently be consolidated into one floor, to save costs. It has been proposed that the gym at the old fitness center/coming student union be utilized for classes and intramural sports to replace these services for students that want them.
It appears that the administration made this decision assuming that the students will continue to contribute a large sum of money through the incidental fee. The incidental fee task force has been working with the thought that this would not be the case. I am personally tired of the university making these decisions without student input. It is likely that the report from the task force will recommend either severing ties with the march, or at the very least an opt out clause for students who do not wish to be enrolled. HOWEVER, this would only be a recommendation, and the provost/president could reject or amend the fee to their own accord.
It is imperative that students make their opinions known on this immediately. Students need an affordable, optional place to work out. March is currently neither of these things. With the graduate council passing responsibility to graduate students, the March fee will come out of your stipend unless we fix this. It is clear now that our opinions have been falling on somewhat deaf ears.
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The GSO will convene on Wednesday, April 2 (see below). The incidental fee task force will have met earlier in the day, and I'll have all the latest.
There will be another Incidental Fee Town Hall Meeting on Tuesday, April 8th (5 PM, Old Library). Dr. Lesley Hallick, OHSU Provost has pledged to be in attendance. This may be the last time this year for students to make their point to the administration about March for the coming year.
I'm doing all I can, but I think at this point what we need is a large collective student voice, explaining that we will not tolerate being forced to pay an exorbitant fee for the march center, especially when our input on its future is not being taken into account.
3 comments:
If our entire incidental fee of $318 per term goes to our membership at March, that is $106 a month. Since I thought March would be closing, I have done some research on the cost of local clubs. Most clubs run between $10-$50/month with a $150 initiation fee. This equals $750 per year. Compare this to $1,272 per year for our incidental fee. For the amount of money the students of OHSU are pouring into March, we should have a voice regarding its future and our membership price. If all else fails, an opt out close should be an option for any student who would rather spend their money elsewhere, perhaps at gym that may not be as fancy but a much better price.
The current March share is $168/term - $56/month.
I feel that people should be able to have the choice if they want to be a part of March. I live in Vancouver, WA but since I'm a student at OHSU I have to pay for this membership. I'm only at OHSU 1 day a week. This means for me to use this membership, I have to drive completely out of my way to work out. It makes no sense for me to have to pay this fee or any other student that doesn't want membership.
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