The Samford Crimson

Issue date: 2/20/08 Section: News

Media Credit: Stephen Nelson

The Samford Outdoor Summer Adventure (SOSA) program was cancelled on Friday, Feb. 1, due to a lack of funding. The following Monday, the program was revived after students petitioned the administration.

On Friday, Dr. Douglas Clapp, SOSA coordinator and associate professor of Classics, sent an email to the SOSA community announcing the official cancellation of the program. On the following Monday, however, Clapp received word that SOSA will continue.
 
“SOSA was started through a SIM grant as a five year pilot program with the goal of easing the transition of new students into Samford. Last year was the fifth and final year of the grant, and there were not sufficient funds to keep the program going without the support of SIM,” Nick Piazza, sophomore biology and Spanish major and  SOSA participant and leader, said.

With the SIM grant no longer in place to offset the cost of SOSA, the only alternative is to increase the participation fee for students.

“When we worked out a SOSA budget for after SIM ended in December 2007, we found that including the personnel costs in the expenses covered by the program fee would make that fee too high to accomplish our hope to keep SOSA accessible to all incoming students,” Clapp said.

The price was about $200, but without SIM funding, the price would rise to $400 per student.
 
In hopes of resolving SOSA’s funding dilemma, Clapp went to Samford’s administration for help.

 “We requested financial help from Samford to cover the wages of workers. The planned budget had approximately 25 percent of the funding from Samford for personnel ($10,000). The other 75 percent for activity expenses would be from fees paid by participants ($32,000). We also requested permission to continue SOSA, in order that SOSA not operate as an ad hoc arrangement without the knowledge of the Samford administration,” Clapp said.

“We, thirdly, requested that the administration begin work to move SOSA from its ad hoc beginnings to more stable footing with a permanent home. Most people find it odd that an outdoor orientation program for incoming students has its primary residence in the Classics Department.”

As these requests for funding fell through the cracks of the administration, it appeared that SOSA was out of options.

So the cancellation email was sent to students who were involved in the program. This email was met full force by former SOSA adventurers, like freshman international relations major Jess Shields, who contacted President Westmoreland with his concerns.

"Graciously, Dr. Westmoreland heard the voices of his concerned students and responded. Some of my closest friends are those from my SOSA group,” Shields said.

Clapp said he was surprised by the immediate response of the administration in answer to the students’ disquiet.

“On Monday, Feb. 4, Mrs. Dana Basinger, director of the Office of Freshmen Life, walked into my office and said that word had come down from Samford Hall that SOSA was to continue. I was surprised. That was the next business day after my email to the SOSA Community,” Clapp said.

The upheaval of student protests over the cancellation of SOSA caught the administration’s attention, and they responded appropriately. In order to adjust to this new transition, SOSA is downsizing from 16 crews and 160 students to 12 crews and 128 students for next year.

“SOSA 2008 was initially cancelled, but thanks to the action of concerned students and countless efforts of Dr. Clapp, SOSA 2008 was resurrected,” Piazza said.

Sam Douglas, sophomore biochemistry major and SOSA  participant and leader, is another student who is relieved by the administration’s change in heart.

“I’m really happy,” Douglas said. “SOSA is incredible.”

Madison Hall, freshman history major, went on a SOSA trip in 2007.

“SOSA was probably one of my favorite experiences and a good transition into Samford. I didn’t realize what a need there was (and) that I could go and serve people… I kind of feel like we were able to get closer to each other, and (we were) also able to serve together—that’s the best way to get to know people,” Hall said.

SOSA staff members were paid with money from the grant, but the fee money paid by participating students was the major contribution in supporting the cost of the adventures. Expenses included in the participation fee were food, gear, transportation, rafting, t-shirts, etc

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