Correction appended
After months of debate over a facilities fee levied upon students at all Penn State campuses, the Commonwealth Council of Student Governments (CCSG) and the University Park Undergraduate Association's (UPUA) finally agree on something -- students should control the semester fee.
CCSG President George Khoury said that while the UPUA resolution to develop a student governance board for the fee doesn't affect commonwealth students, his organization likes UPUA's idea.
"Any move to give students as much influence over the appropriation of the facilities fee is great," he said.
Tuesday, UPUA passed a resolution supporting the creation of a student-based organization that will decide how the money from a new fee will be spent. At University Park, students pay $50 per semester for the facilities fee during the current academic year; the fee will be raised to $100 per semester for the 2009-10 academic year. The amounts of the fee differ across the Commonwealth Campuses.
In April, CCSG supported the addition of the fee on the condition each Commonwealth Campus has the authority to decide whether to implement the fee.
However, UPUA President Gavin Keirans and his assembly opposed the fee, passing a resolution in April rejecting it.
Ultimately, the fee was approved during a May Board of Trustees meeting.
Khoury added the fee wouldn't necessarily cause any drastic changes on Commonwealth Campuses. Under the resolution passed Tuesday, each campus would control its own fee.
On the other hand, UPUA opposed the fee from the start, UPUA Chairman of the Student Assembly Ralph Crivello said.
"You can't have the need without the governance plan," Crivello said. "UPUA knew from experience with the student activity fee and the student activity fee board that the governance is just as important as the need."
Keirans, who expects to sign the resolution when it gets to his desk, said the legislation is a good start.
"It's a strong document as far as what a board should be," he said. "We'll be bringing in other organizations while still keeping it within the UPUA."
This article on page 3 of Friday's Daily Collegian incorrectly stated the name of a campus organization. The correct name of the organization is the Council of Commonwealth Student Governments.
