Spring Break
Program to offer free newspapers for URI students
Robert Hanson
Issue date: 5/4/05 Section: News
- Page 1 of 1
05/04/05 - Students at the University of Rhode Island will enjoy free newspapers, other than the Cigar, if the R.I. Board of Governors for Higher Education approves a program proposed by the URI Student Senate Academic Affairs Committee.
The program, co-sponsored by USA Today, would provide several major newspapers to students free-of-charge at eight locations around the Kingston campus. These papers would include USA Today, The New York Times, The Providence Journal and The Financial Times (London). All four newspapers will not be featured at every location.
The program was outlined at a meeting Friday between members of the student senate, executives from USA Today, university faculty and administrators. Michelle Bryson, New England program manager for the USA Today Collegiate Program said the newspapers would help supplement textbooks at the university.
"The textbooks are great ... but this is a new textbook every day," Bryson said. "I'm sure you'll see the students, walking around, engaging in discussion [when the program is implemented]."
Senate Academic Affairs Committee Chairwoman Julia Monaghan said a total of 700 newspapers will be delivered to campus each day when the program begins next year. Displays for the newspapers will be placed in the University Library, Chafee Social Science Center, Ballentine Hall, the Kirk Center for Advanced Technology, the Fine Arts Center and Mackal Field House, she said. She added that two other displays will be located in yet-to-be-determined locations.
The program is estimated to initially cost the senate about $25,000, which will be paid for in part by the $7 per person increase in the Student Activities Tax approved by students earlier this semester, she said. However, the program is contingent on the BOG approving the fee increase in June.
"If the BOG doesn't approve our tax increase, then the program won't happen," she said. "But I don't see any reason for them not to [approve the increase], they've never turned down an increase that we [the senate] have asked for."
URI students briefly received free newspapers from the program during a trial period in March 2004. That trial period was used to determine the demand for newspapers on campus, Monaghan said.
She said she hopes to expand the size of the program next year. While the number of papers delivered to the university when the program begins will be based on the number of newspapers taken by students during the trial. Monaghan and representatives from USA Today said they believe more newspapers will be needed.
"We think the program will sell out every day," USA Today National Education Manager Doug Fraser said. "We're really excited to see [the program] come to fruition."
Monaghan added, "I've been told the ideal number to have is enough newspapers for 10 percent of the student body per day, which would cost us $38,000. So there's plenty of room to grow."
The senate will only be charged for newspapers that are actually taken from the displays, Monaghan said. Only people with student IDs, Bryson said, will be able to take newspapers out of a display. However, the card readers in the display will not record any information about the student taking the newspaper.
"We want to make sure they [the newspapers] are there for the students," Bryson said.
Monaghan said the program will pay for recycle bins that will be placed next to the newspaper displays.
"They're going to be donating recycling bins that go next to every kiosk, to hopefully reduce the amount of trash that the newspapers create," she said.
Bryson said the program was initially designed at Pennsylvania State University by a university president concerned about his students' awareness of public issues. Since then, the program has expanded immensely, she said, and now includes over 30 schools in New England.
"The program stimulates a greater understanding of important events occurring beyond campus," she said.
The program has been in the works at URI for about three years, and Fraser said he had been in contact with Dean of Student Life Fran Cohen as far back as five years ago. Jesse Whitsitt-Lynch, the former senate academic affairs chairman, said he and members of his committee had helped establish the groundwork for the program. However, he said Monaghan did most of the work for the program because his term as chairman ended when the trial program began.
"The USA Today program approached [then-president] Kevin [Lopes] three years ago," he said. "He passed it on to me, and I passed most of the managerial duties onto [senator] Ryan [Rabideau], who sat in on the first meeting. After the initial meeting, we decided that it at least deserved a trial program to see what kind of reception such a program would get on campus."
The university's participation in the program will also allow students to access a Web site maintained by USA Today, Fraser said. The site will include articles from the newspaper about specific topics, he said, supplemented by discussion questions prepared by academics across the country. However, he said, not every article published by USA Today would be put on the site.
"All of the content comes from USA Today," he said. "We wanted a site that would take the best of our work ... [but] not take the place of the paper."
The program, co-sponsored by USA Today, would provide several major newspapers to students free-of-charge at eight locations around the Kingston campus. These papers would include USA Today, The New York Times, The Providence Journal and The Financial Times (London). All four newspapers will not be featured at every location.
The program was outlined at a meeting Friday between members of the student senate, executives from USA Today, university faculty and administrators. Michelle Bryson, New England program manager for the USA Today Collegiate Program said the newspapers would help supplement textbooks at the university.
"The textbooks are great ... but this is a new textbook every day," Bryson said. "I'm sure you'll see the students, walking around, engaging in discussion [when the program is implemented]."
Senate Academic Affairs Committee Chairwoman Julia Monaghan said a total of 700 newspapers will be delivered to campus each day when the program begins next year. Displays for the newspapers will be placed in the University Library, Chafee Social Science Center, Ballentine Hall, the Kirk Center for Advanced Technology, the Fine Arts Center and Mackal Field House, she said. She added that two other displays will be located in yet-to-be-determined locations.
The program is estimated to initially cost the senate about $25,000, which will be paid for in part by the $7 per person increase in the Student Activities Tax approved by students earlier this semester, she said. However, the program is contingent on the BOG approving the fee increase in June.
"If the BOG doesn't approve our tax increase, then the program won't happen," she said. "But I don't see any reason for them not to [approve the increase], they've never turned down an increase that we [the senate] have asked for."
URI students briefly received free newspapers from the program during a trial period in March 2004. That trial period was used to determine the demand for newspapers on campus, Monaghan said.
She said she hopes to expand the size of the program next year. While the number of papers delivered to the university when the program begins will be based on the number of newspapers taken by students during the trial. Monaghan and representatives from USA Today said they believe more newspapers will be needed.
"We think the program will sell out every day," USA Today National Education Manager Doug Fraser said. "We're really excited to see [the program] come to fruition."
Monaghan added, "I've been told the ideal number to have is enough newspapers for 10 percent of the student body per day, which would cost us $38,000. So there's plenty of room to grow."
The senate will only be charged for newspapers that are actually taken from the displays, Monaghan said. Only people with student IDs, Bryson said, will be able to take newspapers out of a display. However, the card readers in the display will not record any information about the student taking the newspaper.
"We want to make sure they [the newspapers] are there for the students," Bryson said.
Monaghan said the program will pay for recycle bins that will be placed next to the newspaper displays.
"They're going to be donating recycling bins that go next to every kiosk, to hopefully reduce the amount of trash that the newspapers create," she said.
Bryson said the program was initially designed at Pennsylvania State University by a university president concerned about his students' awareness of public issues. Since then, the program has expanded immensely, she said, and now includes over 30 schools in New England.
"The program stimulates a greater understanding of important events occurring beyond campus," she said.
The program has been in the works at URI for about three years, and Fraser said he had been in contact with Dean of Student Life Fran Cohen as far back as five years ago. Jesse Whitsitt-Lynch, the former senate academic affairs chairman, said he and members of his committee had helped establish the groundwork for the program. However, he said Monaghan did most of the work for the program because his term as chairman ended when the trial program began.
"The USA Today program approached [then-president] Kevin [Lopes] three years ago," he said. "He passed it on to me, and I passed most of the managerial duties onto [senator] Ryan [Rabideau], who sat in on the first meeting. After the initial meeting, we decided that it at least deserved a trial program to see what kind of reception such a program would get on campus."
The university's participation in the program will also allow students to access a Web site maintained by USA Today, Fraser said. The site will include articles from the newspaper about specific topics, he said, supplemented by discussion questions prepared by academics across the country. However, he said, not every article published by USA Today would be put on the site.
"All of the content comes from USA Today," he said. "We wanted a site that would take the best of our work ... [but] not take the place of the paper."
