Plans are still in the works for Minot State University's proposed wellness center, but vice president for student affairs Dick Jenkins said the building could be the eventual home of the college of nursing as well as student health and counseling and disability services and of student fitness.
About $10 million of the $15 million project would come from student and user fees. The Legislature must approve the $15 million project and students will be asked to approve the fee hike, either through the student government or with a vote of the student body.
Last year students gave their approval to redirect three student fees toward a wellness center. The fees were due to end after the debts were retired on the Gordon B. Olson Library, the Student Union, and on building renovations. Students agreed to redirect the $15 per student per semester fee for the library; the $10 per student per semester fee for building renovations and the $7.50 per student per semester fee for the Student Union debt toward a wellness center.
Jenkins said the additional fee increase would be no more than the difference between the $32.50 the students already pay per semester and $100. The total student fee for the wellness center could total anywhere from $60 to $100 if students give their approval.
Jenkins said an architect is working on plans for the project. The building would likely be built adjacent to the MSU Dome and could involve moving an existing athletic field to the north of the building. That's an area that has also been under discussion as a location for a possible Community Bowl. Jenkins said there are no final plans yet.
The university will take the project proposal back to the state board for approval. If it is approved, work would likely not get under way until 2010.
Andrea Johnson