In March's student government elections, voters supported making improvements to the University Health Center and both Campus Recreation Centers at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
But the next question on that ballot was if they would belly up and pay the $80 per semester in student fees it would cost to make those changes.
UNL students weren't quite that fit.
At the last meeting of the school year for the Association of Students of the University of Nebraska, the senate created a committee to find out what went wrong with last year's proposal, and why ASUN thought students would be willing to pay that kind of money.
The Campus Wellness Ad-Hoc Committee will be made up of six to 12 students, possibly from other campus organizations including Greek Affairs, the rec and UHC's student advisory boards or the Residence Hall Association. Positions will be appointed by Jared Tidemann, a junior political science major and speaker of the senate.
Justin Solomon, a sophomore family science major and ASUN senator for the College of Education and Human Sciences, wanted to make sure the committee educates students about how much the upgrades they are asking for cost, so ASUN doesn't ask students to fork over more money than they are willing to pay.
ASUN President Megan Collins, a junior business administration major, said the committee also must figure out how ASUN can scale back last year's referendum, and whether or not it's even worth it to put a new, similar motion on next year's ballot.
"Obviously something didn't click with the student body last year," Solomon said.
The committee will report back to ASUN on Oct. 7 with a new strategy. Collins pointed out that the goal of the committee is not to create another bill but to see if it would be a good idea to do so.
With an ad-hoc committee, ASUN creates a temporary group to elicit student opinion. This year they're asking students to help make their jobs easier by coming straight to their representatives with campus concerns.
One student took advantage of ASUN's open meetings and pitched a communications class project to the student senate.
Travis Schoeneck, a freshman biological systems engineering major, gave a speech about research he did on why parking passes at UNL cost what they do.
Schoeneck had a parking permit last semester but gave it up because it was too expensive. He said he didn't think most students know the transit system is paid for by parking permits. Therefore, he said, finding ways to save the transit system money should lower the price of permits.
"See, now we know that it's important to students," Collins said. "And that will be on all our radars."
RYANBOETEL@DAILYNEBRASKAN.COM
is a member of the 
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