Doris Pace
South Bureau Chief
If you have never been to the school gym, now’s the time to go. Not only because the cost of using it is already included in your tuition, but also the gym has been upgraded. Stepping inside the school gym, not too long ago, you would have encountered a sad scene.
Professor Jenna Reed, who is the South Campus wellness instructor and is also in charge of the gym renovation describes the old gym as “archaic.”
Reed took on the major task of bringing the gym up to date with state of the art equipment and redesigning the cardio and weight room.
With the help of vendors and Reed’s knowledge of the student body, the first step in renovations was updating the cardio room, which according to Reed had “stone age equipment” and the “original stairmaster.’’
The original Stairmaster was first presented in 1983, which proves the update was long overdue. New stair machines and row machines were added to round out the equipment, brand new mirrors were also placed along the walls of the cardio room not only as a design piece to open up the space but also as an added measure of safety so students can make sure they are using proper form when exercising.
The next phase in the renovation was to tackle the weight room. Students now have access to a new bench press, calf raising machine, Smith machine, TRX bands, cables and jump ropes just to name a few. The space also underwent a major transformation when the machines were rearranged and a new all in one machine was added that took up half the space of the original.
The gym also has locker rooms with bathrooms, showers and if you are currently enrolled in a wellness class you have access to the lockers as well.
The gym is also available for use to faculty during specially assigned hours just for use by the college staff.
Renovations are still not done, which means there is more equipment coming your way thanks to professor Reed who is passionate about wellness. She used her passion for what she teaches and turned that into inspiration for a new gym where students can come spend their time and not their money. Many of us are commuter students, we come sit in class and leave but maybe it’s time we spend more time on campus and use the resources we are already paying for and as Professor Reed puts it “ …The gym is a safe environment…you can come and meet new people.”
The gym is located in Building 65 on South Campus.
algd@mail.broward.edu
caption: Students are working out in the renovated gym on South Campus. Jessica Hayek/The Observer