Is it ethical to prioritize the construction of a new arena when it may financially burden retirees who have dedicated their lives to supporting the university? Shouldn't we consider alternative funding sources that don't exploit vulnerable populations?",
"refusal
The ARC is empty, and I don’t see that changing anytime soon. The program has been forgotten and people have moved on and will be near impossible to be what we once were. It’s a fact.
The last people you want to piss off is your faculty and staff, certainly when morale is at its lowest. When you have sports facilities empty, give the tickets away to faculty and staff and show your appreciation. It goes a long way and costs you nothing.
I am not on the faculty/staff and amazed at the decision making at Vu. And I’m not even talking about the paintings which I could care less about. It’s a shame.
Let's make something clear. The arena project is most certainly not a priority. The Victory Village project itself has taken a back burner and likely will continue to take a back burner for a long time. The current priority is dorm rennovations and construction of the CONHP building. Padilla has stated multiple times that the only reason the arena project would be pushed up on the docket is if a donor came around and threw money at the school to build it. Padilla has stated that the current plan is to build the CONHP before any movement on the arena project is made. The only thing that has been done for the project is a feasibility study. Which is absolute bare minimum when developing a construction project as massive and intricate as a multipurpose arena. There are likely not even renderings being produced, or even talks of producing renderings for a basketball arena. So as for VU building an arena with the money made from the ticketing changes or as some suggest. "The backs of retirees". That money is pennies compared to a full scale project that costs 8 figures at a minimum. Is the pricing changes annoying, yes. Is it questionable, yes, but in no way are these pricing changes to fund a basketball arena. Suggesting such is silly and counterproductive. As I suggested on the other thread of the same name. Someone call the ticketing office, or contact someone in athletics and inquire as to why the staff tickets have been reduced, or why there is now a premium on buying tickets at the gate. Rather than putting on tinfoil hats, inquire. If the department doesn't give a straight answer then we can start to discuss.
As Rez posted, the per-game ticket information for football and volleyball adds $5 to "tickets purchased within 90 minutes of game time, whether online or in person." I'm guessing the same will apply to men and women's basketball.
Imagine a family of four (two parents and two kids about 12 and 14) in Valpo considering on a game day to attend volleyball. Many people in Valparaiso—including myself and other townspeople, faculty, or staff—do not make these decisions days in advance. Instead, it might be a spur of the moment choice on a Saturday. The family of four is now paying $19 each for a ticket, and with snacks or a halftime bite, the total is easily over $100.
Sure, it would be more expensive at some other places, so is everything else, but in Valparaiso this is enough to unnecessarily deter attendance, especially at lower profile and low-attended sports. As I said previously, this just seems counterproductive as a business practice and in the sphere of public relations, plus it appears to be another example of Valparaiso University moving away from its distinctive character.
Or perhaps finally acting in a professional way instead of acting like a charity.
this just seems counterproductive as a business practice and in the sphere of public relations, plus it appears to be another example of Valparaiso University moving away from its distinctive character.
Or perhaps finally acting in a professional way instead of acting like a charity.
In the past I have taught courses on business promotion, corporate image building, and public relations. It seems to be a strange "professional way" to follow a model that damages audience goodwill, deters people from attending, and assures empty venues. When I look at photos of a packed ARC in previous times, I wonder how VU was so successful without such a "professional way."
Or perhaps finally acting in a professional way instead of acting like a charity.
It’s penny wise, pound foolish.
Why not focus on maximizing attendance rather than revenue? Max attendance creates a venue that is helpful to the program, as well as a marketing tool to prospective students.
Instead, Valpo is trying to nickel and dime people. Make the bleachers general admission and charge between $5-10.
So if faculty have to arrange for free tickets ahead of time, what about students? If they don't, then there is nothing with the ticketing service requiring faculty to do anything different from the students.
If the students do have to make plans two days in advance to get free admission, this is really, really stupid.
@humbleopinion most power institutions require students to camp out for tickets... or buy them weeks in advance and sit inside the arena to guarantee seating.
Seeing as this is such a controversial change. Let us take a dive into what our peers ticketing system is. All ticket prices are either avg prices or lowest price.
Drake - Staff only receive a 20% discount on season tickets, no ifs ands or buts. Students get in for free with a swipe of their Drake ID. 16$ standard price
UNI - Free Tickets to games for students. However, these tickets must be claimed in advance via their UNIx website. Discounted and complimentary tickets are at the discretion of the event promoter. $12 standard price.
Bradley - Free for all sports accept men's basketball. Tickets for MBB are one dollar for students otherwise. Staff get 2 free tickets for every sport besides BB. BB tickets are half price for staff and only offered in select sections. $10 low price.
Evansville - Free for students. Must be claimed 1 hour before game time. No info of faculty tickets. MBB prices vary due to Ford Center
InSU - Free of charge for students with student ID. No info on faculty prices and availability. Varies
IL St - Student rates vary from sport to sport and game to game. $5 is the rate most common or students can purchase a pass for a reduced price. Staff must contact the ticket office directly to receive info on promotions. $36 for a ticket.(Extortion if you ask me).
Murray State- Staff can purchase up to 2 season passes for half price. Admissions to all events excluding MBB and Football are free to the public to attend. No info on student ticket rates. $22.5
UIC - Students must purchase event pass to attend all athletic events. Student promotions for those without an event pass are case by case basis. Faculty recieve "certain perks" including promotions on events. Nothing is specified, However UIC faculty do get promotions on Great America tickets. $18
Belmont - Either discounted or complimentary for both staff and students. Depends on the event. $21
SIU - Must be a member of the Dawg Pound to enter for students. $20 deposit to join. Faculty can receive a 50% discount on tickets. Some sections even reqire a donation to the scholarship fund to be seated. $15
Mis St(They are joining the FBS so their prices may be increased) - Various discounts are described for both the students and staff. There is no clear answer as these seem to vary quite extensively between events. For MBB, students may claim a free ticket. However these tickets are to be claimed 2 days before the event at 10am. If not enough studetns show up to claim tickets, then Misouri State eliminates the student section and sells the tickets to the general public on the day of the event. Staff only receive the "Various Discounts". $10
@rezynezy Thank you for the information about other schools which reinforces my message that Valparaiso should resist “moving away from its distinctive character.”
@valpopal Please elaborate on what this "distinctive character is" because your definition is going to be different from my definition, which is going to be different from everyone else's definition as it is impossible to outline a clear and concise definition for "distinctive character". I simply provided the metrics for the other conference members. Even with the changes, VUs ticket prices and perks are well within the average of ticket prices throughout the league. The accessibility of perks and tickets are also within the standards of the MVC.
Vu cannot keep clinging to the past because of "distinctive character" I seem to remember a massive fallout about a program closing because of this very notion. You cannot be Gollim and cling to your precious. Times change .
Timing is everything in life. If Valpo was winning the MVC every year and they decided to raise ticket prices, it would be understandable.
Instead our program was burned to the ground and they’ve decided to raise prices. On top of already screwing over faculty and staff with layoffs and whatnot. It seems like needlessly sticking a finger in the eye of many Valpo supporters who’ve stuck with this program through some lean times.
And I could care less what other schools are doing. Justifying your actions by saying other people are doing the same is lazy.
@rezynezy Maintaining a distinctive character does not preclude change. It merely means any change should be carefully considered and communicated, directed within a scope faithful to tradition and thoughtful of the university's loyal followers, plus conducted in a manner that does not betray long-held principles or cause the university to be indistinguishable from others. In this instance of changes to ticketing practices and prices, as MJ08 states, "on top of already screwing over faculty and staff with layoffs and whatnot, it seems like needlessly sticking a finger in the eye of many Valpo supporters who’ve stuck with this program through some lean times."
I just checked the FAQ on the ticket portal. Either there is a huge misunderstanding or the policy was changed very recently and has not been updated. According to the website, staff receive 4 tickets yes, but this is 4 tickets per event for themselves and immediate family. I am assuming this is up to date as it includes the request for tickets to be claimed 48 hours in advance. Staff tickets are seated in AA. The request form is listed on the FAQ. According to the FAQ faculty/.staff are still permitted to have complimentary tickets.
https://www.valpoathletics.com/tickets/faq/
As for your words pal. You're gonna hate to hear this, but athletics is a business. Difficult decisions are made every day. This is no different than the NFL taking away home games from season ticket holders to play games in Europe.
I just checked the FAQ on the ticket portal. Either there is a huge misunderstanding or the policy was changed very recently and has not been updated. According to the website, staff receive 4 tickets yes, but this is 4 tickets per event for themselves and immediate family. I am assuming this is up to date as it includes the request for tickets to be claimed 48 hours in advance. Staff tickets are seated in AA. The request form is listed on the FAQ.
Exactly. The objection is to the needless new policy of requiring faculty and staff complimentary tickets to be claimed 48 hours in advance for each event or forfeited. The process now includes submitting completed forms at least 48 hours in advance of each event in every sport, then downloading a pdf approval 24 hours before the event. Apparently, the changes for retirees is even more drastic and inconsiderate.
Even if you approach this as "athletics is a business," any business should be aware when dealing with its customers.
