UTA Student Senate: Resolution 22-21, “Once And For All, Football"
By José Romero, The Shorthorn staff, Nov 16, 2022
Excerpt:
Resolution 22-21, “Once And For All, Football,” wants to hold a referendum during the upcoming campus elections to ask students if the university should raise the Intercollegiate Athletics Fee by $500 a year to establish an NCAA Division I Collegiate Football program, according to the resolution.
Currently, the Intercollegiate Athletics Fee is $8.50 per credit hour, capping at $115, according to the university’s website.
As of Fall 2022, UTA has an estimated enrollment of 40,990 students, according to previous Shorthorn reporting. That makes it one of the only universities of its size in the nation without an American football program, the resolution states.
Student Government released a poll asking students their thoughts on bringing NCAA Division I Football back to UTA and posted the results on Instagram. Out of 625 responses, 92.8% responded yes and 7.2% responded no.
In the same poll, when asked if they’d be willing to pay $400-$500 more a year to establish it, 76.24% of 627 responded yes. Those who answered “no,” were then given other money ranges to choose from and were asked how much more they’d be willing to pay. 57.31% of 171 students responded with “none.”
Dylan Buck, student body vice president and author of the resolution, said passing this resolution wouldn’t mean it would be implemented. Instead, the resolution hopes to gauge interest by allowing the student body to vote on whether or not a college American football team is something they’re interested in.
Buck said if an American football team is established, there would also have to be another team created for women-identifying athletes, such as women’s soccer or women’s swimming.
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