USA Today, Wall Street Journal, New York Times and St. Louis Post-Dispatch all on the front porch every morning-for free! While this may be a parent’s dream come true, it’s a reality for some students living on campus.
Students living in Griesedieck, Marchetti West, Marguerite and Reinert are now receiving each of the newspapers every day, as part of the USA Today Readership program, sponsored by Residence Life.
The program began Feb. 19 and Residence Hall Association President Chris Coleman said that all the reactions have been positive.
“One of the only issues remaining is recycling,” Coleman said. “Right now the USA Today people are picking up the leftover papers and the ones in the bins.”
“One other thing we’ve noticed is a lack of publicity,” Coleman continued.
“We need a banner or something saying `Hey, free newspapers, sponsored by Residence Life and RHA.'”
Students are generally pleased with the opportunity for free papers.
“I like reading all the financial information in the Wall Street Journal,” said junior economics major, Nick Bergan.
Freshman Anne Lampe is excited about getting the newspapers but wishes she had found out about the program sooner.
“I like it a lot except that I already forked out the extra money for a subscription to the Post-Dispatch,” Lampe said. “Being a poor college kid, I’d much rather have it for free.”
Lampe continued, “It’s still a good way for college kids to increase their awareness of current events.”
Students living in other dorms aren’t too bothered by having to walk a little. Freshman Sarah Meyer thinks that free newspapers are worth the effort.
“I think it’s a great program that truly benefits everyone by making the newspapers more accessible to students,” Meyer said.
“If I ever wanted to really read a particular paper, I would only have to walk a short distance,” Meyer added.
Right now, with the budget provided by Residence Life, the papers will be distributed until May 4. The long-term fate of the readership program is still uncertain.
“It’s really going to depend on what kind of money Residence Life has left over and what funding RHA can come up with,” Coleman said.
