CAMPUS BRIEFS: Thursday, July 2, 1998

U. rec facilities to cost less, have longer hours As of this fall, students will enjoy extended hours and lower membership fee prices at both the new Gimbel facility and the Penn Fitness Center in Hutchinson Gymnasium. During the week, hours will be extended from the current 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. to 6:30 a.m. to midnight. And the weekend hours will remain from noon to 6 p.m. for the time being, according to Recreation Director Mike Diorka, who emphasized that weekend hours may be extended as well, once the semester gets underway. "We're not sure what the weekends will bring," Diorka said. "It really is going to be driven by usage? it doesn't makes sense to keep [the facilities] open if people don't use them, it's not cost effective." And students will also have access to two gyms for the price of one this fall -- at an even lower cost. According to Diorka, the price of a year-long student membership will be lowered from $125 to $75. The exact prices for faculty, staff and alumni memberships are yet to be determined, although they currently are and will continue to be higher than the student rate. And Diorka added that students are the main focus of the Recreation Department's recent efforts to improve facilities. "We really aren't soliciting outside members," he said. "If someone already has a membership with us, we will probably allow them to renew it, but we're looking to have [Gimbel and Hutch] be primarily student facilities." -- Ginny Dorsey For-profit colleges eyes Philadelphia branches PITTSBURGH -- A for-profit college with 48,000 students in 12 states and Puerto Rico has applied for permission to open campuses in Pittsburgh and Philadelphia. The University of Phoenix has asked the state Department of Education for permission to offer bachelor's and graduate degrees, said Dan Langan, a spokesperson for the state agency. The Pennsylvania branches, if approved, would offer business degrees, said Charles Seigel, the university's vice president for national affairs. It could receive a state license within six months but could need up to a year to obtain approval from the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools. ''I would certainly think it's unlikely we would be open before the spring of next year or possibly even the fall of next year,'' Seigel said Tuesday. He said the university caters its classes to working adults. Phoenix has an on-line library with access to ''millions of journals,'' Seigel recently told New Jersey officials. He said 10 percent of the university's curriculum is lectures and discussions in on-line chatrooms. The average age of the college's students is 34, and annual tuition averages about $6,300. -- The Associated Press