Turns out students at Lincoln University in Pennsylvania should think twice before going for that extra helping of fries or extra cheesy pizza at the dining hall. Students who are found to be “to heavy” must fulfill a physical education requirement.
During each freshman’s fall semester, health educators at the university weigh students and calculate their Body Mass Index (BMI.) If a student’s BMI is above 30, then they have to take a course for one credit called “Fitness for Life.”
So its kinda like the Biggest Loser. But for credit. And involuntary. And without world-renowned trainers. Or a $250,000 cash prize.
As if it wasn’t enough to think about grades, classes, jobs and that cute guy/girl you met at the bar last weekend, whose name still manages to escape you, you now need to make sure you maintain your lbs at a certain level.
The requirement has been in place since 2006 and has gone without a hitch. Until this year when the university found out that 80 seniors (16 percent of the class) have yet to complete the fitness course.
“I didn’t come to Lincoln to be told that my weight is not in an acceptable range,” Lincoln University student Tiana Y. Lawson wrote in a column in the student newspaper The Lincolnian. “I came here to get an education which, as a three-time honor student, is something I have been doing quite well, despite the fact that I have a slightly high Body Mass Index.”
Obesity among young people is a topic America has been obsessed with finding an answer to for at least the past decade. But it remains true that one in six kids between 6 to 19 (right around that freshmen age) are overweight.
“There’s an obesity epidemic,” Mr. DeBoy says. “The data are clear that many young people are on this very, very dangerous collision course with heart disease, diabetes, and stroke—health problems that are particularly bothersome for the African-American community.”
But for now, Lincoln University sits in a precarious position as the only university to partake in mandatory weight testing and law experts remain unsure if the enforced fitness course is legal.
Unreal. The rules/requirements should be for everyone. Not for a specific class or target. That’s discrimination.
Schools in general are just a joke and a waste of money. Schools are nothing but broken promises and dreams. They teach people nothing of real value. The only thing schools teach is how to be subservient under a “one world government”. No free thinking, no creativity, no independence in schools.
Better off using the internet for learning and education. You learn a lot more than being inside the box. A degree/diploma is nothing but a piece of paper.