Lawrence Students will now be given free memberships to the Appleton YMCA. The executive director of the Fox Cities YMCA, Fred Hauser, and Bill Hodgkiss, Lawrence’s vice president for business affairs, signed an agreement, effective Oct. 21, 2002, that allows LU students to use the YMCA during specified hours. This new partnership was inspired by a combination of factors. For years, the University has granted YMCA members access to the Recreation Center’s pool (during times when the YMCA pool is closed and for special programs and events) without asking for anything in return.
Last spring, a number of students, faculty and staff voiced concern about the facilities available in the Recreation Center. In response, the Athletic and Recreation Committee explored possibilities to purchase new equipment, make needed renovations to the center, and expand the center’s fitness programming. Due to budget restrictions, however, several of these proposed changes, in particular adding new fitness equipment, were not possible at that time.
In order to better meet the needs of its students, therefore, Lawrence University has pursued and created this new partnership arrangement with the YMCA. There is still a possibility of attaining the funds needed to improve the Rec Center and the Lawrence-YMCA partnership is by no means a substitute for these renovations, but it does provide students with a state-of-the-art exercise facility less than a block from campus while the university works to improve its own facilities.
To obtain their free YMCA memberships, Lawrence students should stop by the Rec Center information desk to get a copy of the agreement with specific details about the membership. Lawrence Students are welcome to use the YMCA on weekdays 8:00 to 10:00 a.m., 2:00 to 4:00 p.m., and 7:30 to 9:45 p.m., and during all hours of operation on the weekends, which means Saturdays 5:45 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. and Sundays 9:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
If you have any questions about the partnership between LU and the YMCA, you can e-mail Kendra Marlowe at marlowek@lawrence.edu, or Kurt Kirner at kirnerk@lawrence.edu.