Oakland University’s Student Congress met on Monday, May 24 for their first summer meeting under the Brandon Gustafson/Amy Ring administration. The meeting’s discussion topics included a tuition increase, tension between the campus radio station and the athletic department, and a weeklong event dedicated to renewing the American spirit.

Tuition discussion

Student body vice president Amy Ring led a discussion about a possible tuition increase. Ring said that she does not know the proposed figure yet, but she said that the university plans to speak to her and student body president Brandon Gustafson about it in early June.

Ring discussed the possibility of OU not increasing tuition and fees at all. Eastern Michigan University has already announced that they will freeze tuition and room and board costs at their current rates for the upcoming school year, despite a cutback in state funding.

Ring said that she does not think that a 0% increase for OU would be realistic or a good idea, a comment that was supported by several other OUSC members.

However, Ring said that students would have grounds to oppose a tuition rate increase if it was above the inflation rate of 3 to 5 percent.

She also discussed plans to create a tuition focus group to promote further discussion among OUSC members.

WXOU/athletic department controversy

Matt Pocket, sports director of WXOU, spoke regarding the recent controversy between WXOU and the university’s athletic department.

The controversy dated back to a basketball game last year in which Pocket made a comment during a media time-out for the station that was aired live on Summit League TV.

Pocket’s comment came after a slam dunk by Drew Maynard during a blowout win against Southern Utah. Pocket referred to the decision not to show a replay of the dunk as “lame.” Pocket said that he was not aware at the time the he was still live on the TV broadcast.

Pocket said that following his comment, the athletics department limited WXOU’s access to players and athletic events, including the homecoming game against Oral Roberts.

In that particular case, the athletic department told WXOU that there was no room for them on press row. WXOU attempted to broadcast the women’s game from the mezzanine level, but equipment issues forced them to abandon their broadcast at halftime. Pocket said that the station was granted access to the press row for the men’s game.

Pocket said that there was a meeting earlier in the month in which both sides met and talked about their respective concerns and issues. He said that the issues seem to be resolved, and that both parties are on good terms heading into next year.

Pocket also said that WXOU and the athletics department are looking to expand radio coverage to other sports including club hockey, volleyball and baseball.

Patriot Week

Guest speaker John Bowker gave a presentation on Patriot Week, a project created by Judge Michael Warren and his daughter, Leah.

Patriot Week is scheduled to take place between September 11 and September 17, the anniversary of when the Constitution was signed. Each day highlights a different person, document or principle that was important to the formation of the United States.

More information on Patriot Week can be found at www.patriotweek.org/