The University of Wisconsin-Madison Teaching Assistants’ Association is set to issue a letter writing campaign directed at the Athletic Department, in an effort to increase contribution from the department in the upcoming Recreational Sports Master Plan.
The Master Plan, which will be up for vote on an Associated Students of Madison referendum March 3-5, currently outlines a $7 million allotment from Athletics of the total $223 million proposed project, a 3 percent contribution. Students have put forth 57 percent of funding, which stems from an increase in student segregated fees.
The TAA is a union of graduate students at UW-Madison that aims to ensure the welfare of the university’s teaching assistants and strives to grant them a voice in decisions which will ultimately affect the body.
TAA Co-President Charity Schmidt said the charge from the association stems from the ongoing goal of lowering the rising price of higher education.
“We want to do everything that we can to keep college affordable, to make college affordable,” Schmidt said. “Keeping [segregated] fees down is critical.”
Schmidt said the issue does not lie with the Division of Rec Sports, as she said it has been transparent in the goals of the Master Plan and where the money for the plan is expected to come from. The need to repair the recreational facilities on campus is crucial, according to Schmidt, but the TAA has expressed the cost of those repairs should not fall primarily on students.
The financial problems many graduate students already face is a key reason for reaching out toward Athletics for additional funding, said Schmidt.
“We already live on poverty wages and [segregated] fees place a huge burden on graduate students,” Schmidt said.
The TAA plans to send out an all-campus email to students Monday, with a pre-typed letter addressed to Director of Athletics Barry Alvarez, Chancellor Rebecca Blank and the Board of Regents that students can send from their own email accounts. The letter outlines the desired need for Athletics to put forth more funding, noting a large majority of Athletic revenue stems from student fans already.
Schmidt said while both Athletics and Rec Sports are “common goods” for students, actions must be made in order to keep the goods affordable.
“The Rec Sports situation is not going away,” Schmidt said. “Something needs to be done to ensure students have quality health and fitness facilities on campus.”
