I am all in for helping get the PAH majors club reintroduced as well! Jody, I think that getting the pool re-opened is an awesome idea and I know other people that agree as well!

This does sound like a great collaboration. As online students from acros the country we have limited availabilties to extracurricular activies, and this gives us a platform to work on and be involved in. I cannot believe that a school with such an intense and reputable physical education program would have a pool that is not in operation. Not only are the health benifits being overlooked, but there are so many courses and electives that could be added to the curriculum if you had an arena to practice them in. Maybe if we added some fundraising/marketing to the club we could raise some funds to use with initiatives such as this. I will attempt to contribute in any way I can.

Being an on-line member and not in physical proximity to the campus itself, I believe that my help will be limited, especially as far the limitations of my physical fitness abilities have gone over time. But I can develop a mission statement and at least try and give a purpose to the endeavor. The mission statement that I would propose may be suitable for presentation to board members or those who oversee such projects and purposes at the college level. "In light of the Healthy People 2010 Guidelines, EOU is symetrically aligned with its plans for the benefit and promotion of it students physical wellness and provides a unique and all-encompassing gym on- site to encourage and increase the health and wellness of its students. Through various levels of adaptation training, the gym is here for both the beginner and the inexperienced to gain a better understanding of the importance of good health, endurance and incorporation of these values which will , in turn, increase academic learning and proactive participation for the good of all involved". What do you think? Does anyone want to edit this?

Dana, I'll outline and clarify the concept I've been thinking about. Online students in our program have very little common meeting place like our on-campus majors have. Our on-campus students see each other all the time outside of class, in areas like the dorms hallways, fitness center, and Quinn Gym. Online students are more-or-less on their own other than some interaction in discussion boards during class. There is no venue for communication beyond classes, and a majors club could foster and support this. Perhaps online students prefer to go it alone. Speak up on this! I may have a misconception, but I've often heard online students lament about their isolation and difficulty pursuing their degree from off campus. Perhaps another good idea is a new student "orientation" for online students whereby experiences students can mentor.

Good ideas Angela. Off and on we have had group fitness INTACT classes run by students like the ones you mentioned. A club would be a good way to organize these in a more sustainable way, because they are good experience for students to teach and the other students benefit from these classes. I was just recently talking to Jody about indoor cycling classes with the new bikes we are supposed to get in Quinn.

The pool is a controversial issue and with it being empty so long, it may take too much to recover it. The club could look into it and get the interest going again. Costs were the reason given for its closing a few years ago.

Dana, I think your idea is excellent. Maybe each group of incoming students can be assigned to a willing junior or senior "sponsor" if you will. They could be grouped by graduation year, alphabetical, major, etc. Said sponsor will give them an orientation to online courses and the various subject matters. They can be there for support, and almost as a tutor in some situations. Obviously helath and physical education is a difficult matter to study online unless you have some experience or knowledge going in. For those that have access to the campus they have an advantage of seeing and doing. Online only students do not have that ability, but I would not consider that a DISadvantage. I specifically chose this program since I was not required to be on site for ANYTHING. Other may find this a bit difficult and need the support. Again, excellent ideas in many ways.

I think Dana, Julie and Katrina have a great idea. Have the older students helping the "new" students become adjusted to the whole system at EOU. A little buddy program would be great. And why not have the pool up and running while we're at it. It would be nice to have a swim team at EOU. I miss not having a pool to work out in. If we had the pool up and running, it would also help EOU "mingle" with the community (families) in La Grande.

George, I agree that it requires a more formal name, but I still think the name needs to reflect the association with the university. Le Grande EOU Athletcic Club to follow your lead. Since it is the institutions club and not the cities club it is my opinion it should included the schools name somehow. The coach involvement is excellent, and I would hope that all coaches as well as instructors in the Physical Education department would feel obligated to be included in the matter. They are an essential asset of knowledge and networking power for students. And, as always, what is a school without a POOL! Numerous courses, for credit, as well as physical activites for enjoyment and exercise as well as sporting competitions could be completed in this pool. You could generate revenue by charging non-students just $2 or $3 for an open lap swim or exercise class. Though it is costly to renovate a pool, work could be completed by the members of said club, as well as those with pursuit of swim coaching careers; it is an excellent way to learn the mechanics,literally from the ground up, of resurecting a pool and getting it up and running. You may even be able to incorporate a swimming pool operator course and certificate into the deal.

I am an on-line student (I live in metro Atlanta, GA), and this is my first quarter at EOU. I have been out of college for 13 years and these were my first courses at Eastern Oregon. I could have definitely benefited from a majors club or some type of forum to ask questions of my more experienced/veteran peers in the P.E. program. I have felt very isolated at times and have struggled getting used to the classroom setup, forum, and learning how to manipulate a lot of the tools/functions on UniCommons. I also really like the idea of a new student “orientation” for online students where we can receive mentoring from more experienced students. I would love to give my input/suggestions as this move forward. Thanks….Eric.

Thanks for all of your input here. Good suggestions. I will leave this project open into next term, because I have some other classes that will be good to move this forward.

Feel free to continue providing input and edits to the post. I have added a ToDo list based on suggestions.

I have just bumped this into the Sport Management Fall 2010 class to continue work on the project.

I'll address a question some had in class this morning about whether this is a hypothetical idea or a plan for a real club. Right now it is still very much in the concept stage, so any work on this should be examined with this in mind. However, since there has been real interest, this project could progress into an action phase whereby the club is formally re-introduced. If, in the process of the planning here, we decide the need or value for a club isn't there, we can abandon the concept. However, at the very least I would like a viable start-up plan in place.

Let me throw out another reason a club could become a reality soon. Last term I indicated that I am president-elect of the Western Society for Kinesiology and Wellness (WSKW) and called for EOU students to attend the conference in Reno this October. I have a few committed to go, and more are definitely welcome. One of the features of this conference is the Peavy Papers, which are student papers that are presented at a special session. Within a few months, there will be a paper review process that includes students from various universities. We need reviewers from EOU. If a club were to form, it could organize a select group of reviewers, raise funds to go to the conference, and coordinate other concerns in order to make conference attendance a reality. In fact, some simple objective like this may be good enough to drive the re-formation of the club and then other goals could later ensure its continuance.

Brian we met as a class on thursday and came up with a few ideas to start this project. We picked officers and a name and came up with and idea of an activity. i was just wondering as far as just the project where should we post this information.

Steven (and anyone in the class), you should get your work on this reflected somehow in the document by clicking the edit button at the top of this page and updating the information.