Page 288 - Foundations of Learning, 4th Edition (Revised)

might have to help her improve her essay.

Parking Lot Blues: How Can We Make Parking Costs Fairer for All Students?

We all know how much it costs to fill up even our little student cars these days. The price
of gas is a factor in many of our everyday plans. The cost of parking is another expense in our
already tight budgets. Paying parking hurts even more when we feel it is unfair. Kara, a student
at our airport campus, pays $60 each semester to park in the student lot. Jeff, who takes classes
at our downtown campus, pays $8 a day to park at the ramp across the street from school. He
tries to get classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays, but this semester he’s on campus on Mondays,
Wednesdays, and Fridays. His parking costs $24 a week. Michelle has to take classes at both
campuses this semester, so she pays $60 plus parking at the downtown ramp. This runs her
about $8 dollars a week extra. Three students at the same college, all paying different rates for
parking. Is this fair? The staff at our college wear buttons that say “Students first!” Well, the first
thing on students’ minds these days is money and how much it costs to go to college. Parking is
becoming a bigger part of our costs. We need to have a fairer parking policy for all students at
our college. To make my argument, I will look at what my classmates say, what other colleges in
the area offer, what we offer, and how we can find solutions.

Our campus is different from other college campuses in town because we are a commuter
campus. No one lives in dorms; everyone must drive or take a bus to school. The classmates I
interviewed for this paper, Kara, Jeff, and Michelle, all represent students who need to drive to
school. Kara lives twenty miles from campus. This is the best school for her veterinary technician
program and she is happy overall with her classes and teachers. Kara also works part-time in her
hometown to help pay for school. She explained, “I know college will help me get the career I
want in the future, but I’m worried about paying for it in the present.” Kara’s main concern right
now is the cost of gas. Parking is fair, she feels, if she can take all her classes at the airport campus.
Jeff doesn’t live as far away as Kara, but he’s also worried about gas and parking. Jeff is going to
transfer to a university in a year, and he may live on campus then. For now, he lives at home on
the west side of town to save money. He also works a part-time job, on the north side of town. Jeff
could get to school by bus from home, but he couldn’t get to work after school. He complained
that,“The parking system does not take working students into consideration, even though most
students work.”Michelle agrees with Jeff on that point. She feels frustrated that there is no shuttle
between our two campuses. “I have a friend at the private college in town, and even they have
a shuttle!” Michelle exclaimed. It was clear from interviewing my classmates that many students
are upset about the parking system at our college.

Following Michelle’s suggestion, I looked into the private college’s transportation plan as
explained on their web site. Many students live on campus there, so their situation is not the same
as ours. They have very limited parking, and also charge for that privilege by credit: a student
taking 12+ credits pays $100 per semester, 7–11 credits costs $40, and 1–6 credits costs $25.
They also have a shuttle that will pick students up at the main bus transfer points. One of their
greenest solutions is a carpooling board on the main campus web site. Students who do not

282 Foundations of Learning