Dear UW Athletic Dept....

The UW Athletic Department has announced that they're putting the method of voucher redemtion for next year's football student season tickets to a vote.

Here are the details from the Badger Herald

Here's what the Daily Cardinal has to say about it

And here's the e-mail that I sent to everyone in the UW Athletic Dept. Ticket Office directory:

I an a UW sophomore who has had season tickets to football, basketball
and hockey and am writing to express my disapproval of the choices
being given to
students regarding turning in ticket vouchers for football games next
year.

The first choice, having students line up for tickets all at once
like they do for basketball and hockey will create a huge line,
considering that the number of student seats are more than three times
what they are for other sports. The line will also likely be created
weeks, if not months ahead of time, once again introducing the issue
of camping on campus due to nicer weather and a higher demand for
tickets. Students in the Madison area for the summer will have a
distinct advantage over those who are not, and if the redemtion date
is before the beginning of school, waiting in the ticket line will cut
into the Wisconsin Welcome activities that the university puts large
amounts of time and effort into preparing.

The second choice, having students redeem their vouchers on gameday,
is better, but still inferior to the current system. This plan
effectively moves the time and location of the current system from the
Kohl Center on Wed. afternoon to Camp Randall on Saturday morning.
While I agree that this system will encourage students to arrive
earlier for games, seeing as the student section has been criticized
for showing up late to games in the past, it will cause them to arrive
days, if not weeks earlier. It then follows that this solution does
not solve the problem of students missing class, but instead
encourages them to miss class on different days leading up to
gameday. As for camping, the same issues that are present in the
current system will arise.

Tailgating before football games is a Madison and Wisconsin tradition
for students and alumni alike... As the city of Madison is so adament
about upholding the tradition of having the Mifflin street block on
the first weekend of May, I hope that the UW athletic department
follows suit and preserves the tailgating tradition that makes UW
football games one up the greatest college sports experiences in the
country.

I fail to see how either of these options solves any of the problems
created by the current system. If I'm missing something and they
truly are better solutions, I hope that you will respond and explain
to me how these systems will benefit the students and the University
community. I will be voting for the second choice if forced to, but I
hope that the Athletic department keeps the interests of students, the
peers of those actually playing the game, at the forefront of their
decision making.

Building a good relationship with student fans is essential to having
a successful collegiate athletic program. I have yet to see a
concerted effort on the part of the athletic department to really
reach out to the student community. This may involve making
concessions, such as pushing for a change in university policy that
would allow students in the hockey ticket line to actually have
resources at their disposal (such as a blanket) to help counter
negative effects on students' health and academic performance. Just
because certain policies are in place now does not mean that they
can't be changed in the future. There's no reason for students to be
given tickets for having a blanket and pillow when the only way for
them to get great seats to support their favorite UW team is to sit
outside in the cold for weeks at a time.

Take a note from "Krzyzewskiville" at Duke University. Encourage
students to get
involved and show school spirit for their sports team and you'll
retain and grow the wonderful student fanbase you already have at the
University.

Thanks for your time. I hope to hear back from you soon,

Mike Westling