Being Overweight May Cost College Diploma December 1, 2009
Paul Partridge on why Lincoln University is denying diplomas to overweight students.
I’ve heard of grading on a curve, but now there’s grading on a scale – the bathroom scale, that is.
Lincoln University in Oxford, Pennsylvania is refusing diplomas to two-dozen graduates who did not enroll in a mandatory “Fitness for Life” program.
“Fitness for Life,” which began in 2006, is a semester-long class focused on educating young people on physical fitness, nutrition and the health consequences associated with obesity. The program became mandatory for all incoming freshman with a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or more. (To give you an idea, a 5’5” person would have to weigh 180+ lbs. to have a BMI over 30.)
There were 92 students with a 30 or higher BMI who were mandated to take the class, and 24 students decided to skip it. The school has viewed this “Fitness for Life” as a mandatory class and has decided that not all of the requirements have been met for graduation, leaving the two-dozen students without a diploma.
To be fair, the college has the best interest of the students at heart. Lincoln University is the nation’s first historically black college. Its population has remained African American through the years and the black community has a much higher percentage of nutrition-related illness when compared to the rest of the population. High blood pressure is twice the national average, and 12.5 percent of African Americans over the age of 18 will be diagnosed with type-2 diabetes (compared to only 1.8 percent for whites).
So in this regard the “Fitness for Life” program is well intentioned. It is not designed to embarrass or belittle anyone. It is designed to help educate people about health and nutrition so they can make well-informed decision—especially now when they are in college and may be exposed to many additional food options.
There is a lot of controversy over this program and whether or not the students should be able to graduate even if they ignored the program. What do you think? What are your thoughts?
