For over 100 years, UW-Madison has prided itself on the principle of “The Wisconsin Idea”—the idea that education should influence people’s lives beyond the classroom. One way that our university upholds this idea is through our student organizations. From professional student orgs that help supplement classes by introducing students to their career field, to global volunteer organizations that not only allow students the opportunity to participate in service but also to gain cultural perspective through their travels, student organizations are an integral part of the learning process here at UW-Madison. Allowing students the option of opting out of allocable segregated fees would destroy this system of education.
The proposed state bill defines allocable segregated fees as fees that provide significant support to student’s campus activities in which students are responsible for deciding how the money is used (in consultation with the Chancellor and the Board of Regents). While these allocable segregated fees are only 17 percent of the total of segregated fees students pay, amounting to $88.98 per student each semester, according to UW’s Office of the Registrar, these fees fund a multitude of on-campus services. These services include, but are not limited to: the bus pass, the Rape Crisis Center, Tenant Resource Center, Badger Catholic, Sex Out Loud, SPILL, VETS Support, GUTS Tutoring and various grants for student org operations.
Although many may argue that students shouldn’t have to pay for organizations that have ideologies opposite to their beliefs, it is important to remember that ASM is required to have viewpoint neutrality. That is, our student association is required to fund programs that have beliefs across the political spectrum; they aren’t allowed to favor one organization over the other because of their political principles. This is to protect diverse perspectives here on campus. Concurrent with The Wisconsin Idea, college should be a place to expose students to new experiences and push them beyond their limits of comfort. This, however, cannot fully be done without diversity of thought.
Without allocable segregated fees, the nearly 900 student organizations this campus boasts would diminish. The open dialogue for cultural competency and fresh perspectives vanished. The prospective opportunity for learning outside the classroom gone. Thus, to perpetuate and preserve UW-Madison’s legacy of The Wisconsin Idea, I implore my peers to save our student orgs and lobby for allocable segregated fees to be mandatory.
