New column focuses on non-traditional student activities, issues

First, let me thank everyone for taking the time to read this new offering from The East Tennessean and introduce myself. I am Angie Roberts; I am the mother of eight children, grandmother of one, and a senior undergraduate student here at ETSU.

“For the rest of us” is a new regular feature that will deal with issues and topics relevant to us “non-traditional” students.

As older adults, many of us married with children, student life offers a unique set of concerns and challenges.

I welcome input, ideas and feedback from all readers, but I would especially enjoy hearing from readers over 25.

Topics here will range from informative to controversial and occasionally humorous but, hopefully, you will always find it helpful and entertaining.

If you have any suggestions for this column, please feel free to email me at: robertsay@goldmail.etsu.edu.) And, so, on to the topic at hand ....

When most people think of “campus life” they envision life in the dorms or membership in a sorority, possibly participation in varsity sports; in other words, things that are fairly impractical in the lives of the non-traditional student.

According to a Sociological Forum study, there is a significant correlation between involvement in extra-curricular activities and academic success at the university level.

Also, it’s a well-known fact that employers favor applicants with volunteer and organizational involvements listed on their résumés.

That said; I would like to dedicate the first few ‘For the rest of us’ columns to the service of sharing some opportunities to get a life on campus, even if you are too old to pledge a fraternity.

Let’s start by saving some money!
Do you have, or have you been seriously considering acquiring, a gym membership? If so, do I have a deal for you! It’s called Basler Center for Physical Activity.

This facility offers a 15,000-square-foot weight and cardio area (that’s the workout machines for those of us not up on our fitness lingo), an eighth-mile indoor track (no more jogs or walks in the cold, rain or heat — all of which become harder as the years stack up on us), an indoor (HEATED!) swimming pool and both indoor and outdoor climbing walls just to list a small number of amenities.

Basler offers a wide variety of fitness classes too: yoga (my personal favorite), water fitness, an array of martial arts classes, even ballroom dancing!
The best part — it’s free for students. And we all know free trumps cheap all day long!
If that isn’t enough to convince you, if your significant other is not currently a student at ETSU, he/she can join for $17 a month (no, this is not limited to spouses only).

After making a few phone calls to other gyms in Johnson City, I discovered this price to be about half the rate of membership to a private gym and most of those I called do not offer an indoor pool.

Children can join for even less. Membership for a minor child of an ETSU student is only $5 per month.

One last note on Basler: Twice a week the CPA offers a free family swim.

Friday evenings from 5- 7:30 and Saturday mornings 10 a.m. until noon, students can bring their entire family to swim, whether they have family memberships or not, absolutely free.

For more information, check out: http://www.etsu.edu/students/campusrec/default.aspx.