By SUSAN JONES
Student fees will be going up again this fall on Pitt’s Greensburg and Johnstown campuses.
The Board of Trustees Student Affairs committee on June 28 approved an increase to the student activity fee at Pitt–Johnstown to $200 per semester for full-time students and $50 for part-time.
The committee also voted to rename the student athletic fee at Pitt–Greensburg to the student athletic and recreation fee and increase the fee from $105 to $125 per semester for full-time students.
Last year, the board committee approved a $10 increase — from $30 to $40 per semester — to the student health fee at Pitt–Greensburg and a $14 increase — from $76 to $90 per semester — to the student recreation fee at Johnstown.
Pitt–Johnstown increase
The student activity fee increase at the Johnstown campus was initiated by the elected Student Government Association. The fee provides funding that SGA uses to provide registered student organizations with resources to hold activities.
The fee, which currently generates $342,000 per year, was last raised in 2016. The new $200 fee will generate around $768,000 per year and will give SGA the ability to fully fund more than 75 current student organizations and approve new organizations, and will allow the Programming Board to offer a wider variety of events and activities for the entire campus, according to a report from Kenyon Bonner, vice provost for student affairs.
SGA held a referendum on the student activity fee in the spring, and 59 percent of students approved the increase. Bonner’s report noted that because of the campus’ isolation, “a substantial portion of students’ outside-the-classroom activity takes place on campus and within student groups and organizations.”
Pitt–Greensburg fees
The student athletic fee at the Greensburg campus supports operations of the athletics and campus recreational programs, including athletic teams’ travel and equipment, as well as maintenance and upkeep of facilities that are available to all students.
Bonner said in his report that “cost increases have rendered the current student athletic fee inadequate to fund current operations and increased travel expenses, including the addition of one new varsity sport, women’s bowling.”
In addition, the committee approved the name change to athletic and recreation fee, because it supports recreational activities for all students. The fee was last increased to $105 per semester in 2018.
The new $125 fee and name change were approved by the Pitt–Greensburg Student Government Association and Advisory Board Student Affairs Committee in the spring.
Susan Jones is editor of the University Times. Reach her at suejones@pitt.edu or 724-244-4042.
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