So What's All of This Talk About Puppies?
Back in 2013, students, lead by Onward State, campaigned to have a finals week puppy event. This idea entailed Penn State and the community bringing in puppies to allow students to destress after taking their exams. The project was highly supported by the student body and brought to the attention of UPUA (University Park Undergraduate Association).
The idea. . . http://onwardstate.com/2012/11/30/penn-state-needs-a-finals-week-puppy-room/
However, the UPUA had to turn down the idea due to feasibility and risk management problems. They said that further development would be needed to move this from an idea to an actual event. The UPUA concluded that there is no foreseeable finals week puppy event in the future.
The outcome. . . http://onwardstate.com/2013/04/24/the-sad-truth-about-penn-states-finals-week-puppy-room/
The idea. . . http://onwardstate.com/2012/11/30/penn-state-needs-a-finals-week-puppy-room/
However, the UPUA had to turn down the idea due to feasibility and risk management problems. They said that further development would be needed to move this from an idea to an actual event. The UPUA concluded that there is no foreseeable finals week puppy event in the future.
The outcome. . . http://onwardstate.com/2013/04/24/the-sad-truth-about-penn-states-finals-week-puppy-room/
BUT. . .
What if there was an alternative idea to the finals week puppy event? What we propose is a permanent puppy room or additional 'puppy days' that Penn State already offers. There is enough support in the community and the student body that we believe that this could be a really valuable addition to Penn State. An idea that we have is to allow pre-veterinarian and agriculture students to take a class that helps care for the pups. Students who wish to visit the puppies can do so during designated hours for a nominal fee, and that money will be used to help feed and care for the animals. We think that students who are majoring in an animal science would love some hands-on work and we know that many students would pay a small fee to spend some time with some puppies.
Many colleges have something like this already in place including Cornell, Maryland, Kent State, Harvard, Yale, Indiana, and Emory. They all have their own variations of the idea, however, all of the schools have seen a positive effect with the programs. We think that it is too soon for Penn State to give up on the idea. There are so many different methods of integrating dogs into the education mix that we feel like a solution between students and the school can be found.
Many colleges have something like this already in place including Cornell, Maryland, Kent State, Harvard, Yale, Indiana, and Emory. They all have their own variations of the idea, however, all of the schools have seen a positive effect with the programs. We think that it is too soon for Penn State to give up on the idea. There are so many different methods of integrating dogs into the education mix that we feel like a solution between students and the school can be found.