Student fee increase comes to a vote
Students will get the chance to vote on whether or not they want to increase their Student Service Fee by $50 a semester Tuesday and Wednesday. The 26.3 percent fee increase would cover the renovation of Hofheinz Pavilion, the construction of a new football stadium and offset a $5 decrease in state funding.
If approved, the fee increase would be in effect for up to 25 years. The next generation of Cougars will be affected by the increase, so UH students should carefully weigh the pros and cons of the fee increase before voting on it.
A negative aspect of this fee increase is that it is coming at a terrible time. It would be difficult to find a single Cougar who has not been affected by the recession. While $45 a semester doesn’t seem like a lot of money when tacked onto a student’s semester total, that $45 could be used to buy two weeks of groceries.
Another negative aspect of the increase is that many UH students would rather see the money go towards furthering the academic goals of our campus. While we always have a good turn out at our football and basketball games, there are many students who care more about their academic pursuits than attending games. These students would likely rather see extra money spent making UH a more academically rigorous environment.
But on the flip side, having state-of-the-art football and basketball stadiums could attract wealthy donors to our University. Not to mention prospective Cougars may be attracted to UH because of the prestige of our athletic teams and the grandeur of the buildings they play in.
Students can think of the fee as a way for them to give back to the University. When they come back for a football or basketball game after graduation, they would feel proud that they had a part in the construction of the new football stadium and the facelift of Hofheinz Pavilion.
There will be 12 voting locations on campus, including M. D. Anderson Library and the University Center. Be sure to have your voice heard.
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