Voting begins on UCSC athletics program
“Would you support a new student fee of approximately $90 per quarter ($270 per year) to retain the current NCAA Athletics program at UC Santa Cruz?”
That’s the million dollar question UC Santa Cruz students are facing.The athletics program is on the chopping block as the university looks for ways to save money and the decision is in the hands of students.
“Athletics is at a crossroads the central campus doesn’t see it as a sustainable funding model right now. So campus leaders are asking students to see if they would be interested in putting up a fee to fund athletics,” said UCSC media relations, Scott Hernandez Jason
Voting opened Wednesday. Right now students are only paying $5 a quarter but if they vote yes, that fee would be $90 per quarter.
“$90 to keep something like school spirit and keeping people together on teams and meeting new people through that seems like a small price to pay,” said UCSC student Mika Kaczmar.
If students vote no, UC Santa Cruz would become the first university in the state to get rid of its athletics program.
“People get scholarships to come here and to see that go away i just can’t believe that would suck,” said student voter, Mano Ranaweera.
UCSC has 15 NCAA sports at the Division III level. The program has earned 7 national championships, 16 individual national champions and 226 All-Americans. Some of the sports teams that could get axed include; cross country, swimming, diving, and women golf, track, and soccer. If the sports get cut 280 athletes would no longer be on an NCAA team.
“I hope that we get the awareness that you know the students care about athletics and like I said even though it’s an opinion poll and hypothetical, to put this decision on the students it’s not fair for their experience and I think that the power that be can really figure this out and find a way to make it work financially,” said UCSC mens basketball coach, Ron Dubois.
Signs are posted all around campus reminding students they have until May 17 to vote. Depending on poll totals the slugs athletic jerseys could be hung up for good by 2017.
