The Associated Students of UH are strongly opposed to the Athletic Fee

HA Note: "The Associated Students of the University of Hawai'i remains "strongly opposed" to the proposed $50 per semester student athletic fee, incoming president Andrew Itsuno said yesterday. After more than a year of discussion and rewriting of proposals by the athletic department, University of Hawai'i-Mānoa Chancellor Virginia S. Hinshaw notified students she is "recommending a student athletic fee to the UH Board of Regents." In a campuswide e-mail to students Sunday, Hinshaw said, "although this is a difficult decision, I believe that it is time to move forward on this fee." She said she is recommending the latest proposal because the athletic department has "improved oversight and tangible benefits for students.""

About how UH's students are opposed to the fee, incoming President Andrew Itsuno said:
"There is no student support for it. 77% of the students that responded to the ASUH survey opposed the fee. The Athletic Department refused numerous requests by ASUH to conduct their own survey on the student body." (HA)

About how the proposed fee increased suddenly without any justification, Itsuno said:
"We oppose the fee because there is no transparency, the Athletic Department refuses to provide us with a budget to justify the fee. When they tried to pass the fee through the Student Activities and Program Fee Board, which the board failed to pass, they said that $37.50 would be enough. In a span of a few months the fee proposed is now $50. How is the number justified? Why was the fee raised? Also, how has the Athletic Department been paying its annual deficits?" (HA)

About how the benefits mentioned in the proposal have an uncertain value to the students, Itsuno said:
"We oppose the fee because of the lack of research on the benefits it will have for the students. For example, in the proposal, athletics will hold a free concert for the students. Students already pay a fee to the Campus Center to hold free concerts. Why should students be taxed twice for the same benefit?" (HA)

HA Note: "Hinshaw said in her e-mail to the students that approximately $100,000 from the fee will be used to support a variety of activities for students and, in addition, the athletic department will host a free concert for students."

About the importance of the Athletic Fee, Hinshaw said:
"The projected $2 million raised annually by this fee will clearly strengthen our UH athletic program's ability to provide successful experiences for all our student-athletes, specifically through scholarships, travel, materials and supplies and other expenses directly beneficial to student-athletes. This support is critically important in the area of gender equity because most of our Wahine sports programs — our terrific softball program, for example — need such support to thrive since such sports generate limited income." (HA)

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